Housing and Credit Counseling, Inc. Offers Free Home Buyer ‘101’ Workshop September 16, 2017
Chris Burk, Homebuyer Counselor for HCCI, said, “Interest rates for a 30 year mortgage are still very reasonable for qualifying buyers. It’s a good time to see what you need to do to be pre-approved to buy.” The workshop is sponsored by Capitol Federal.
Burk said, “HCCI’s goal in offering the workshop is to help first time homebuyers learn all aspects of the home buying process so they can make good decisions.” Burk said the market is strong now for home sales during the fall months and lower interest rates are still being offered. Burk, a Certified Housing and Consumer Credit Counselor, has been with HCCI for 16 years. In addition to teaching the workshop Burk also provides free counseling for first-time homebuyers and others wanting to improve their credit scores to be pre-approved for a mortgage loan. HCCI says people who attend a homebuyer class and follow-up with free face-to-face counseling are far more likely to know what to look for when choosing a realtor, an insurance agent and a mortgage lender because they will know what to expect at every step in the home buying process. “Knowing what you can afford to buy, getting pre-qualified for a loan and then staying within that price range is a good plan to follow for every homebuyer,” Burk said.
The HCCI Homebuyer 101 Workshop addresses budgeting to successfully manage a house payment, taxes, insurances and routine upkeep and repairs. The workshop is a collaboration of HCCI, the City of Topeka Department of Housing and Neighborhood Development, and Capitol Federal to make home buying a reality for low and moderately-low income households. Space is limited and registration is required for the free class. To enroll contact HCCI at 234-0217 or 1-800-383-0217 or e-mail hcci@hcci-ks.org. For additional information about the counseling and financial literacy education HCCI offers go to www.hcci-ks.org.
# # # #
Housing and Credit Counseling, Inc. is a non-profit agency founded in 1972. HCCI provides counseling and education about budgeting, credit, debt repayment, mortgage delinquency, rental housing issues, student loan repayment and homeownership opportunities. HCCI is certified by HUD and accredited by the Council on Accreditation. HCCI is a member of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling and is licensed and regulated in Kansas by the Office of the State Bank Commissioner. HCCI’s license number is 0000003. The Better Business Bureau of the Great Plains named HCCI as the Integrity Award Winner for a four-state region. HCCI has offices in Topeka and Lawrence, and provides video-counseling through partner locations in Emporia and Manhattan. Call 1-800-383-0217 or visit www.hcci-ks.org.
