Feds Again Slap Dallas for Housing Blunders, Leaving Low-income Home Buyers in Limbo

Dozens of low-income families hoping to buy homes with help from Dallas City Hall are in limbo after federal inspectors found widespread problems with how the city has run the program. Nearly 60 families — who could receive as much as $20,000 each toward down payments and closing costs — have been left in the lurch, according to the city. The Dallas Homebuyer Assistance Program had been a game-changer for people who otherwise could not afford to buy a house: Single parents. A 70-year-old widow on a fixed income. A schoolteacher who earns enough to survive, but not enough to save. People like Laportia Estell, 34, who works a government job coordinating school field trips. She rented for years, intimidated by how much money she'd need for a down payment on a house. But with the help of the city's program earlier this year, Estell said, she became the first in her family to own a home."It was a breakthrough," Estell said. “It was a blessing.”  Continue reading...