A new online tool is available for homebuyers that identifies properties in Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess and Bronx Counties that may be available for special down payment assistance.

The Empire Access Multiple Listing Service (EAMLS) has recently installed its new "Down Payment Resource" (DPR), a free online application that was previously only used by the Minneapolis Area Association of REALTORS.
"For a potential buyer, when they do a search on the Multiple Listing Service, those that are available for federal,state or local programs or grants available to help with downpayment funding    will be flagged with an icon that allows buyers and realtors to see what those programs are and what the criteria are for the homebuyer," said EAMLS President Gary Leogrande. "For many people-particularly first-time homebuyers-the largest barrier to purchasing a home is the lack of a substantial down payment."

Potential homebuyers can visit www.wpar.com and click on "Find a Property" and enter the search criteria. When viewing each property, prospective buyers can look for the DPR icon, click on it and answer a short survey to determine their potential eligibility for various programs.

Leogrande says such incentives could come in the form of a low-cost loan for the property, grants, and programs that could be suitable for schoolteachers, or fire or police personnel.

"Our program is to get those programs out and visible for the realtors and potential homebuyers. This is just another resource, another tool, to help propel our housing market," said Leogrande.

Congressman John Hall announced his support today for a measure that would enact a pay cut for him and every other member of Congress. Hall's sponsoring the "Taking Responsibility for Congressional Pay Act," which would reduce the salaries of House and Senate members by 5%.

Hall says the last time senators and representatives voted themselves a pay cut was in 1933--in the midst of The Great Depression.He says the current economic downturn is an appropriate time to show solidarity with struggling Hudson Valley residents and people across the country, and do so again.