Announces New Home in the City Program in Syracuse

SYRACUSE, NY (August 11, 2016) – Senior Vice President and Residential Mortgage Manager Joseph Culver recently announced the bank has partnered with Home HeadQuarters to assist first-time homebuyers in the City of Syracuse.

Announcing the pledge Culver said, “Through our partnership with Home HeadQuarters, the Home in the City Program encourages individuals to obtain homebuyer education and determine qualification for down payment and closing costs assistance grant programs, then meet with a loan originator to determine the maximum amount of a home mortgage they qualify to finance.”

The loan program provides:

• 95% financing for the purchase of a one or two-family, owner-occupied residence for borrowers with a household income up to 120% of the HUD Area Median,
• An interest rate reduction of 0.25% for eligible first-time homebuyers who complete homebuyer education classes, and
• No mortgage insurance or additional monthly payments are required.

Participants may complete homebuyer education classes offered through Home Headquarters. The classes help prepare them for the responsibilities of home ownership and cover topics like home maintenance, how to select a realtor and mortgage lender as well as credit and debt management.

Home HeadQuarters CEO Kerry Quaglia thanked for its support of first-time homebuyers saying, “We are very excited about this initiative as it makes homeownership more affordable to first-time buyers wishing to live in the City of Syracuse. Coupling ’s Home in the City Program with down payment and closing cost assistance grants and our homebuyer education, ensures first-time buyers are well prepared for the responsibilities of homeownership. These important steps instill pride in our community and help stimulate Syracuse’s local economy.”

For more information on ’s Home in the City Program contact . To learn more about first-time homebuyer education classes, contact Home HeadQuarters at 315.474.1939.

About

offers personal banking, asset management and business services through a network of 154 banking locations in six states, including New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. and its parent company, Bancorp, are headquartered in Norwich, NY. Bancorp had assets of $8.6 billion as of June 30, 2016, and is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol B.

About Home HeadQuarters

Home HeadQuarters is a non-profit Community Housing Development Organization and certified Community Development Financial Institution whose mission is to create housing and related opportunities in Central and Upstate New York to improve the lives of underserved people and revitalize the communities in which they live. In 2015, Home HeadQuarters served nearly 2,500 people through education and counseling services throughout the region, provided $10.5 million in first mortgages, commercial investments, down payments and home improvement financing.  Home HeadQuarters also eliminated the blighting influence of more than 100 vacant properties through redevelopment activities in the City of Syracuse. For more information, visit www.homehq.org.