Julio and Ashley Pimentel had almost given up on becoming first-time homeowners. The family of seven had made countless offers on homes in northern Utah for the past two years, only to receive bad news, once again, that they had been outbid. Owning a new home at an affordable price almost seemed out of the realm of possibility.
In January of 2020, Layton City acquired a new vacant lot, located on the west side of town, with federal housing funds from HUD’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program. The lot was intended for the construction of an affordable home for a low- to moderate-income family.
The City then donated the parcel to the non-profit foundation Have a Heart. Have a Heart oversees partnerships with local cities to acquire lots, and with local contractors, subcontractors and suppliers who provide various services and supplies for free, or at a low cost to build a home. The organization asked for the assistance of Stuart Smith, president of Mainline Construction in Layton, and his crew, who built a new home at 205 South Angel Street in Layton, where the Pimentel family now resides.
The Have a Heart Home foundation is a nonprofit, joint initiative of the Northern Wasatch Association of Realtors and the Northern Wasatch Home Builders Association to provide housing opportunities to families who wouldn’t be able to own their own home without it. A mortgage is then tailored to meet the family’s financial circumstances.
For more information about Layton City’s CDBG Homebuyer Assistance program, contact Morgan Cloward 801-336-3770, mcloward@laytoncity.org.