AHAA and Star Jones Reynolds Launch FreshStart Program for Homebuyers

AHAA and Star Jones Reynolds Launch FreshStart Program for Homebuyers

- Initiative to Award Monthly Down Payment Grants -

NEW YORK, June 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Star Jones Reynolds, co-host of ABC's The View and noted attorney, partnered with the Association for Homeowners Across America (AHAA) in announcing a new program this week that's designed to provide deserving homebuyers with unrestricted funds for the down payments needed to purchase a home. The new program, called FreshStart, was conceived by AHAA in response to a growing need to make the dream of homeownership a reality, especially for those who have had to overcome significant challenges in their lives. The program is intended to help buyers who qualify for a mortgage but lack the down payment funds needed to close on the sale.

Coinciding with National Homeownership Month, this program was announced during a noon Central Park press conference in New York City.

Monthly, both AHAA and Ms. Reynolds will present a FreshStart grant to recipients across the nation who have been recommended by their mortgage lenders. As membership in AHAA increases over time, the goal will be to increase the number of monthly recipients and extend the life of FreshStart beyond the initial one-year commitment that was announced today.

"As soon as I learned about FreshStart, I wanted to help," said Star Jones Reynolds. "AHAA is focused on helping individuals, especially women, and families, to own their own homes. It's important. It's needed. And I'm going to do all I can to make sure it happens."

Traditional down payment assistance programs require the participation of both buyer and seller. In today's strong real estate market, there is little incentive for sellers to provide such participation. FreshStart eliminates the need for seller participation by simply providing the buyer with funds equivalent to three percent of the price of the home being purchased. Buyers are not required to pay back the funds they receive from FreshStart and can apply those funds either to down payments or closing costs.

"AHAA was created to be the successful homeowners' resource. Part of AHAA's mission is helping people become homeowners. Down payment assistance is essential for the millions of homebuyers who qualify for a mortgage, but have not been able to save the funds needed for a down payment," said Ann Ashburn, president and chief executive officer of AHAA. "We have been providing down payment assistance through our AmeriDream program for many years, but the realities of today's market make it essential that we go a step further. FreshStart represents that vital additional step, and AHAA provides ongoing support for both homebuyers and homeowners."

Through AmeriDream, upwards of $500 million in down payment assistance has been provided to more than 150,000 homebuyers nationwide over a six-year period beginning in 1999. AmeriDream remains a functional offering of AHAA in addition to the FreshStart program.

For more information on joining AHAA, visit http://www.ahaanow.org/, or call 866-716-3630.

About AHAA

The Association for Homeowners Across America (AHAA) was created to represent the needs and interests of homeowners and homebuyers and help them protect what is likely their greatest financial asset. No other organization similarly represents this segment of the American public. AHAA is a non- profit, non-partisan membership organization created to serve as a one-stop, expert resource to help educate Americans about home ownership and provide them the services they need to protect their investment and make their voices heard on important policy and legislative issues. The association is headquartered just outside Washington, D.C. in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

About Star Jones Reynolds

Star Jones Reynolds is a lawyer, former prosecutor and television personality best known as co-host of ABC's The View. She debuted in television in 1991 as a studio commentator for Court TV, became the NBC legal correspondent and, in 1995, was named a senior correspondent and chief legal analyst for Inside Edition covering the O.J. Simpson criminal and civil trials. Along with her co-hosts on The View, Star received numerous nominations for "Outstanding Talk Show Host." Born in Badin, North Carolina and raised both there and in Trenton, New Jersey, Star earned her B.A. at American University in Washington, DC, and her law degree at the University of Houston, after which she was admitted to the New York Bar. She served in the Brooklyn District Attorney's office ultimately being named Senior Assistant District Attorney in 1991. Heavily involved with numerous philanthropic organizations, Star launched her own foundation -- The Starlet Fund -- in 2002 through which financial grants are made to individuals and organizations dedicated to the support and encouragement of women and girls.

Source: Association for Homeowners Across America

CONTACT: Deborah Radman, +1-212-572-6220, dradman@stantoncomm.com, or Alonza Robertson, +1-202-466-1933, Alonza@westinrinehart.com, both for the Association for Homeowners Across America

Web site: http://www.ahaanow.org/

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