The City of Newton is poised to offer significant incentives to both homebuyers and builders, with a stated objective “to jump-start new home construction over the coming summer months.”
Newton is offering $10,000 cash to anyone purchasing a new home built inside the city limits in 2014, with no-fee building permits and a guarantee to builders should their new homes not sell within 12 months.
“We are offering some amazing incentives to build new homes in our city,” said Newton Mayor Michael Hansen. “The City of Newton has added over 1,600 new jobs in the last six years, but the amount of new housing has not kept pace with this growth. With support from our city council members who authorized the incentives, and a great development staff to implement the plan, we expect to see a tremendous increase in new home starts over the next several months.”
According to Newton Development Specialist Craig Armstrong, the criteria for the city’s buyer incentive program is simple and straightforward.
“The home must be built on a subdivision or ‘infill’ lot inside the city limits of Newton, and the improvements must meet or exceed $160,000 in value,” Armstrong noted. “The builder is required to install a radon abatement system at the time of construction, and the buyer’s cash incentive will be available when the loan is closed and a Certificate of Occupancy is filed.”
There are no other restrictions or conditions for the homebuyers’ cash incentive, and the money may be used for down payment or closing costs, or may simply be received as a cash bonus. Builders may use the buyer cash incentive as a marketing tool for new homes constructed on a speculative basis, with the guarantee of interest and utility costs absorbed by the city if their homes don’t sell within 12 months of completion.
The new home construction incentive programs are an important component in the city’s branding campaign, “Get To Know Newton,” which was inaugurated in late February of this year. More information on Newton’s outreach, events and incentives is available online at www.GetToKnowNewton.com. Interested parties may also contact the city’s Development Specialist at craiga@newtongov.org for additional details on the incentive programs.