Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCommunity Reinvestment Act Committee charge, 1992 r Pzuv f te,c1,:z5tor RICHARD J. WHITE - '"��� Town Manager e Vo_ 1r, L'U Y—,--.-.i t)\ v° i w September 1 , 1992 , SEP 21992 Ms . Laura Dorfman Lexington Savings Bank 57 Bedford Street Lexington, 02173 Dear Ms . Dor an: The meeting of the Board of Selectmen on Monday, August 24 , 1992 , voted to accept the Proposal to Establish a "CRA Committee" according to your memorandum of June 22 , 1992 . Please proceed with your plans , and if I can be of further assistance , please contact me . Sincerely, fa--- Richard J. White Town Manager RJW: ea ✓cc : Board of Selectmen �MOANI P\ slic. ., nol PRILq•�; a 1625 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE • LEXINGTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02173 CeXNOTO TELEPHONE (617) 861-2776 • FAX (617) 861-2921 _� Lexington 4 Savings Bank 57 Bedford Street,Lexington,MA02173 (617)861-6100 June 29 , 1992 Richard White Town Manager Town of Lexington 1625 Massachusetts Avenue Lexington, MA 02173 Dear Mr. White: I have enclosed the original of the "CRA Committee" proposal (which I faxed to you earlier) for your review. I would welcome any comments and suggestions you may have. Thanks again for your assistance. I am looking forward to hearing from you soon. Si erely, ;. IVY-0 tiOn__VVrck., Laura Dorfman Vice President MEMORANDUM To: Board of Selectmen From: Laura Dorfman Subject: Proposal To Establish And Appoint CRA Committee For The Town Of Lexington Date: June 22, 1992 Please accept this as a proposal to establish a "CRA Committee" in the Town of Lexington. The "CRA" or "Community Reinvestment Act" of 1977 (U.S.C. 2901) as amended, was enacted to encourage each financial institution to help meet the credit needs of the communities in which it conducts business. The act requires that each institution be assessed and rated by its federal supervisory agency on the institution's record of helping to meet the credit needs of its entire community, especially low and moderate income areas (consistent with safe and sound operations of the institution). In order to both comply with this regulation and to continue to provide a full range of financial services to the Lexington Community, Lexington Savings Bank has instituted a "CRA" program which includes several new loan products designed for and specifically marketed towards a wider range of borrowers (low- and moderate-income and first-time homebuyers). A copy of the bank's current CRA Statement is attached for your review. The creation of a "CRA committee" is designed to pool resources available through the many housing related businesses in Lexington in order to enhance the availability of affordable housing in this area and to facilitate the ability of the local banks to comply with the Community Reinvestment Act. Generally speaking the committee's main objective will be to measure the available affordable housing stock in Lexington and to determine whether current affordable housing needs are being met. Furthermore, the committee will discuss available financing alternatives for both the construction and purchase of affordable housing as well as attempts to attract first-time homebuyers to Lexington. We are proposing that this committee be comprised of sixteen individuals who are involved in various aspects of the real estate industry. Specifically, we would like to include representatives from local banks and members of the various housing-related town committees in Lexington.* In addition we would like to include a member of the Planning Board, a member of LexHab, and a representative of elder housing needs. Finally we would like to invite as guests, on a rotating basis, local real estate brokers, attorneys, and developers. We feel that while the proposed size of the committee may seem large, the diversity of its membership and the resulting exchange of information among committee members will be instrumental in accomplishing the committee's goals as stated above. The committee's major areas of interest will include maintaining an adequate affordable housing inventory, attempting to draw first-time homebuyers to Lexington, and creating a forum for the exchange of all types of information related to housing in Lexington. As far as the actual creation of affordable housing is concerned, both banks who have real estate owned on their portfolios as well as developers would be good sources of new affordable housing stock in addition to any existing units available through the town. Once the need for the development of affordable housing is determined, banks can play an important role in providing construction, rehabilitation, and/or permanent mortgage financing. Another goal of the committee would be to attract first-time homebuyers to the Town of Lexington, and, specifically, to make every attempt to make home-ownership available to those who otherwise could not afford to live in Lexington. This can be accomplished not only through the availability of appropriate housing stock, but also through creative first-time homebuyer mortgage programs which are offered by many banks. In addition, one of the most important functions of the group will be the exchange of a wide variety of information among its very diverse membership. We feel that all of the people involved in the committees efforts have valuable information that can be useful to the group's overall concern of providing affordable housing in Lexington. For example a bank may have funds available for low-income homebuyers; however, the bank may not have information relative to properties on the market in the appropriate price range. This information would most likely originate from local real estate brokers or developers. Another example would be the construction of affordable housing either by the town or by a local developer; in this situation, the bankers on the committee could discuss ways to meet the financing needs of the project. Other miscellaneous activities could include a first-time homebuyer's fair, the creation of an affordable housing consortium of lenders, homebuyer counseling,and addressing housing issues that are specific to the town's elderly population. Finally, I would like to thank you for your interest in the "CRA Committee", as well as for the opportunity to make this presentation. I am looking forward to your suggestions and comments relative to both the formulation of the committee as well as its activities. *I have spoken with representatives from the town of Bedford who have expressed an interest in participating in the committees efforts; however, given the number of people who would be involved on behalf of the town of Lexington, I am not sure additional membership would be warranted.