People from all walks of life are moving into the city of Atlanta for the convenience, the amenities and to combat traffic. But if you're someone with an average job and an average income, are you finding intown housing out of your price range?

If you feel you've been priced out of the intown market, you should know about programs designed to help home buyers afford single-family homes, townhomes and condos in all parts of the city. The city of Atlanta, the Atlanta Development Authority and the state of Georgia all have grant and loan programs available for qualified buyers.

Photos by CHRISTOPHER OQUENDO / Special (ENLARGE)

Emily Byars qualified to buy a condo under a program requiring a number of units at Twelve Centennial Park to go to those in a certain income range.

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An e-mail at work told neonatal intensive care nurse Emily Byars about the special housing program available through the tax allocation district. The process 'went really quickly,' and soon she moved into a one-bedroom, one-bath condo at Twelve Centennial Park downtown.

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The pool beckons far below Byars' condo at Twelve Centennial Park in Atlanta.

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Jennifer Hudson, with son Juan, bought a home with her husband in Sylvan Hills.

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The Hudsons' home, which cost $159,000, fit the program's move-in-ready requirement.

TIPS FOR WORKING WITH AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROGRAMS •Find a Realtor who specializes in affordable housing programs and can explain the pros and cons of each. You want someone to give you advice that won't get you into foreclosure and who can help you negotiate the best price, terms and conditions. •Get loan pre-approval. Select a lender who is approved for the program you're interested in. •Look at homes that meet the requirements of the affordable housing program. Geography can be limited. The condition of the house is sometimes a factor. Make sure you know what you're looking for. •Choose a home based on what you can afford. The lender may tell you what you can qualify for, but can you handle the payment shock? •Get your funding together. Builders may have programs to offer, so depending on your short- and long-term goals, you may have choices to make. •Make sure you have everything you need. The process of getting to closing for some of these programs is very stringent, so understand that there is extra paperwork needed with these additional sources of funding. •Understand the conditions of the loan and the grant and the time frames for each. Some programs have grants that never have to be paid back. Others require you to keep your home for a certain period of time before they are forgivable, and others will require payback whenever you sell your home. Source: June Harland, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage

One example is Home Atlanta, a program of the Atlanta Development Authority. Ernestine Garey, the authority's managing director of housing finance, says, "Our Home Atlanta program has made dreams a reality for buyers wanting to live amidst a thriving metropolis but seeing a lack of affordable choices. With home prices falling nationwide, 10 percent down payment assistance and a 4 percent grant through the program, this is a great window of opportunity!"

The Home Atlanta program has worked with home buyers whose annual income has ranged from $16,042 to $77,362, with an average of $46,349. The average sales price of homes purchased using Home Atlanta is $171,126. With a particular focus on providing "work force housing," the program has helped secure mortgages for 64 educators, law enforcement officers, government employees and health care workers who work in the city.

Here are a few of the programs out there. Each has restrictions and conditions, so be prepared to ask and answer lots of questions as you research your choices.

Atlanta Development Authority mortgage programs for buyers within the incorporated city of Atlanta include these:

Home Atlanta: 30-year fixed rate first mortgages. Funds are still available but only through October.

Home Atlanta grants: 4 percent of the loan amount.

Housing Opportunity Down Payment Assistance Program: second mortgage loan at zero percent interest, deferred for 10 years and available for up to 10 percent of the purchase price.

American Dream Down Payment Initiative/Atlanta Affordable Home Ownership Program: second mortgage loan at zero percent interest, deferred for five years and available for up to $10,000.

For more information, go to Atlanta Development Authority.

The Atlanta Renewal Community Mortgage Assistance Program is administered by the city of Atlanta Bureau of Housing and provides qualified buyers with $30,000-$50,000 in the form of a forgivable loan to assist home buyers with required down payment, gap financing, principal reduction, interest rate reduction, closing costs and prepaid items associated with purchasing a home. The program is restricted to residents of Atlanta who live in certain geographic areas or are moving from one to another. For more information, contact Melanie Lucas at 404-330-6617 or mlucas@atlantaga.gov.

The Georgia state Department of Community Affairs offers the Georgia Dream Homeownership Program with low-interest fixed-rate first mortgage loans and down payment and closing cost assistance for home buyers who meet income and/or job requirements. Different programs are available for those living in metro Atlanta and for the remainder of the state. For more information, review the Georgia Dream Homeownership Program.

Nurse buys condo with boost from program

Emily Byars, 23, is a neonatal intensive care nurse at Emory Crawford Long Hospital. Last September, hospital employees got an e-mail telling them about housing options available through the city of Atlanta's Eastside Tax Allocation District and announcing there would be representatives at the hospital to talk about the program.

"I decided on the spur of the moment to stop by and sign up. In a week, I was talking with the people from Novare and soon I was closing on my first home, a condo at Twelve Centennial Park downtown," Byars said.

What she bought

Byars bought a one-bedroom, one-bath unit with an open floor plan. It came with a balcony, hardwood floors, washer and dryer and all the kitchen appliances.

The buying process

"It all went really quickly. I filled out the paperwork, which was pretty simple, and selected my unit."

A difference in commute

"I had been living in an apartment in Decatur, and it was getting to be 45 minutes to get to the hospital. Now I can walk to work in four minutes."

The opportunity to live intown

"The program was just right for nurses and other health care workers at the hospital who don't have the highest incomes but want to live downtown. I like being close to the things I like to do downtown, like going to the Fox Theatre and restaurants. I save money on gas, there's no yardwork and I use the pool and exercise facility."

Proud to be a homeowner

"I wasn't expecting to own a home this soon, and I'm so glad I was able to be a part of this program."

Tax allocation districts offer subsidized home buying

Byars bought at Twelve Centennial Park, where subsidized homes are available through the city of Atlanta's Eastside Tax Allocation District, which required the builders to reserve 20 percent of their housing units for buyers whose income falls within a certain range. For a family up to four people, the cap is $56,950.

There are five developments offering soft second mortgages — a zero percent interest, 50-year deferred loan — in Atlanta's Eastside TAD.

A tax allocation district is an officially designated area that governments create in order to provide gap funding to help promote public and private redevelopment in areas with slow or low growth. Increases in property tax revenue, which are generated from new investment in the district, are allocated to pay infrastructure costs or certain private development costs within the TAD.

In Byars' building there were 104 homes available at a subsidized price of $144,000 for a one-bedroom unit. The rest of the market price is covered by the subsidized second mortgage from the city of Atlanta, which doesn't have to be paid back until the property is sold, the owner refinances or the owners don't use the unit as their primary residence.

The group that reached out to Byars and her colleagues at Emory Crawford Long Hospital is the Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership, a nonprofit organization that promotes mixed-income housing.

Susan Adams, Research, Policy & Information/MICI director, says, "We have done a lot of research around what metro jobs pay and the cost of housing close to job centers. Finding affordably priced homes close to Atlanta's 23 major job centers is almost impossible. As a result, families are moving farther and farther out to find homes they can afford."

"The soft second mortgage program has been a powerful tool for allowing people who have been enduring long commutes and high gas prices to take advantage of a homeownership opportunity near their jobs and all the city has to offer," said Mijha Butcher, ANDP's program manager for Twelve Centennial Park. "There has been a lot of interest in the program; some one-bedroom units are still available, but they are moving quickly."

For more information, log onto Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership.

Home Atlanta gets buyers into first house

First-time home buyers Jennifer and Antwan Hudson, both 27, and their two boys Juan, 11, and Khylee, 2, were tired of renting. "We wanted to have something we could call our own," says Jennifer. The staff accountant and her retail manager husband got a referral to June Harland of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage through one of Jennifer's co-workers.

"My friend told us June was really good in finding grants that could help you buy a home. We met with her and she gave us a rundown of the different programs available and the requirements for each. She knew what programs could be paired with what to get us the most help possible."

Finding a house

"I didn't think we would find a home quickly because we're both picky, and my husband wanted an older home while I wanted a new one," remembers Jennifer. "But Miss June showed us this house, and we fell in love. It was built in 1946 but had been completely renovated by the Community Home Investing program. It has a full basement and everything we wanted."

What they bought

The three-bedroom, three-bath home in Sylvan Hills has a formal dining room, custom kitchen, master bedroom with sitting area, and basement with full bath, an entertainment room and a bonus room. The backyard has a privacy fence and deck with plenty of room for grilling out. The large attic means expansion upstairs is possible as well.

The finances

The house was $159,000. Their 10 percent grant from the Atlanta Development Authority's Home Atlanta program paid $15,900 of the price, then they qualified for 4 percent down payment assistance.Their costs at closing were about $1,500, which included the appraisal and inspection fees.

To qualify

In addition to falling within a certain income level and completing the right paperwork, the Hudsons attended a homebuyer's seminar conducted by the Atlanta Urban League to qualify for the program. The home had to be move-in ready in order to be considered for the program as well. "I was so pleased that the home inspector really bragged on the craftsmanship of the house. Everything was done with quality materials. That gives us one less thing to worry about," says Jennifer.

Renovating for affordability

The Community Home Investing program of Atlanta Investing Inc. is one company that rehabilitates intown houses for sale to buyers with low to moderate incomes. These homes are designed to be eligible for government grants for qualified buyers. "We believe all families deserve to live in a beautiful home in a family-friendly neighborhood, no matter what their budget," says Perri Chandler, community partnership coordinator of CHI.

Advice from a Realtor

When she first got into real estate, June Harland of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Sandy Springs decided she wanted to learn all about affordable housing programs. She now offers seminars to help home buyers understand how to improve their credit and how to understand the affordable housing options that are available. She says this is a really exciting time to buy a home in the city of Atlanta. "For example, the Atlanta Development Authority has at least 100 million federal dollars to help people buy into the city. You can make up to $71,000 a year and get money off the price of the home and an additional 4 percent in down payment assistance. That's unheard of."