MHP News

New web site for MassWorks

BOSTON, December 10, 2008 --- There’s good news for employers who have joined MassWorks and employers who are considering it.

MassWorks is easy to use.

The state’s employer-assisted mortgage program for first-time homebuyers has launched a new web site that makes it simple for companies to use the program to recruit and retain employees, and easy for employees to determine quickly just how much home they can afford.

Located at www.massworks.net, the web site has all the documents necessary to run the program as well as an easy-to-use calculator that benefit administrators and employees can use to figure out just how much lower a homebuyer’s monthly payment would be using MassWorks.

If this is the first time you’re hearing about MassWorks, the program was created for two reasons:

1)    To help Massachusetts employers recruit and retain employees.

2)    To help promote safe, secure homeownership programs that will keep homebuyers in their homes for the long run.

MassWorks is different than many traditional employer-assisted mortgage programs where employer funds are used strictly for down-payment assistance. While down-payment assistance is possible, MassWorks combines traditional fixed-rate financing from a bank with an employer contribution and a dollar-for-dollar state match. These funds are applied to a homebuyer’s monthly mortgage payment. This keeps a homebuyer’s payments low.

MassWorks can be flexible to an employer’s specific goals. The minimum employer contribution per employee is $2,500 and the state will match every dollar an employer puts in up to $5,000. MassWorks is being offered  by the Massachusetts Housing Partnership (MHP) and the state Department of Housing and Community Development, in partnership with participating banks.

The program was launched in 2008. To view the growing list of employers who are using MassWorks, click here.

MassWorks’ graduated payment system is modeled after MHP’s SoftSecond Loan Program, which has helped over 12,000 households purchase their first home, while maintaining industry-low foreclosure rates.

To find out more about  MassWorks, go to www.massworks.net  or call 1-800-752-7131 or email MassWorks.