Five Questions With: Barbara Fields

"Our first-time homeownership numbers are on the rise which is good news."

Barbara Fields is the executive director of Rhode Island Housing and earlier this month she lauded Coastway Community Bank and HomeStar Mortgage for its partnership in financing 827 mortgages worth $132.5 million for new home buyers in 2014.
These numbers are the highest they’ve been since the financial crisis of 2008.
Fields, named executive director just this year, has nearly 40 years of experience in the housing industry and she talks with Providence Business News about the Rhode Island housing market, home-buyer financing and whether the growth will continue.

PBN: Rhode Island Housing, working with its lending partners, financed more than 800 mortgages totaling more than $132.5 million last year, making the most since 2008. What does it mean to return to pre-financial crisis levels?
FIELDS:
Over the past year, we have seen our first-time home buying programs continue to grow. That’s encouraging news for Rhode Island Housing and the state’s economy as a whole, but our local economy and housing market continue to face challenges. At Rhode Island Housing, our goal is to make Rhode Island a better place to live, work and raise a family. We are a business that allows families to access and maintain affordable homes, and invests in developments that help the economy. Last year’s figures are part of a positive trend.

PBN: What part did Coastway Community Bank and HomeStar Mortgage play in last year’s lending?
FIELDS:
Earlier this month, we were pleased to recognize Coastway Community Bank and HomeStar Mortgage for their outstanding support of first-time homebuyers at our annual breakfast for real estate professionals. The event is a testament to the strong partners our agency has across the state – this year more than 300 real estate professionals were in attendance. When we reviewed the numbers from our first-time home buying programs for the past year, Coastway Community Bank and HomeStar Mortgage stood out for their commitment to helping families access Rhode Island Housing’s homeownership loans and services. We are grateful to Coastway and HomeStar, along with all of our lender partners, for their dedication to helping Rhode Islanders purchase their first homes.

PBN: Why should a new homebuyer think “Rhode Island Housing” when they think about buying a home?
FIELDS
: Rhode Island Housing serves residents with a broad range of income levels, helping families with a combined income of up to $100,000 buy their first homes. Rhode Island Housing builds a bridge to the middle class by helping families access safe, affordable homes. A stable home allows people to hold a steady job, access transportation, and maintain a higher quality of life. We don’t just help move people to middle class, we also have a number of programs to help keep them there. In addition to assisting families with the purchase of their first home, we can help those experiencing economic challenges to keep their homes or make improvements.

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PBN: How do you feel about the Rhode Island housing market right now?
FIELDS
: Our first-time homeownership numbers are on the rise which is good news.
That said, the state’s housing market still faces challenges. Under Governor [M.] Raimondo’s leadership, I believe Rhode Island Housing has a big role to play in the continued recovery of the housing market and the local economy. With a total impact of $375 million in the local economy last year, this agency is a key driver of economic growth in Rhode Island. And if we’re going to add jobs, productive workers need good, affordable homes. We help connect the workforce with housing that’s affordable for them while investing in developments that also grow the economy.

PBN: Do you expect to see the agency’s closing volume to continue to grow or was 2014 an outlier?
FIELDS:
We have seen an upward trend in our closing volume continue through the early months of 2015. With the support of our lender and realtor partners, and programs such as down payment, closing cost assistance and our FirstHomes Tax Credit program, we help borrowers become successful homeowners. Launched in July of last year, our tax credit program offers new homebuyers a tax credit worth up to $2,000 per year for the life of their loan. As market conditions improve and we continue expanding our partnerships with new lenders, we expect to see growth in our closing volume this year. Across the agency, Rhode Island Housing has a strong track record of success and I’m excited to continue building on that moving forward.

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