Spartanburg City Council recently approved transferring nine city-owned vacant properties to Oak and Ave Property Group, LLC, for the development of single-family homes.
Intended as a measure to increase homeownership rates among the City’s low-to-moderate income residents, the homes will be sold to buyers at or below 80 percent of Spartanburg’s area median income ($60,150 for a family of four) under terms of the agreement.
Largely acquired by the City during a large increase in the number of foreclosures after the 2008 financial crisis, the transferred properties are scattered throughout the city’s Northside and Saxon-Farley neighborhoods, and Oak and Ave plans to construct homes at 1,300-1,600 square feet, with a minimum of three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Once completed, the purchase price for the homes will range between $210,000 and $240,000. In his presentation to Council, Community Development Director Martin Livingston said that the plan meets several of the City’s housing goals, including alignment with the Northside Transformation Plan and City Comprehensive Plan and increasing community resiliency in historically underserved communities.
Oak and Ave is a minority-led company and has existing partnerships with local minority builders, mortgage companies, and realtors that will assist throughout the process. Under terms of the agreement, the City will make funding from its home buyer closing cost assistance program available to eligible buyers. Properties transferred as part of the develop deal include:
- 154 Ridge Street
- 160 Ridge Street
- 370 Arch Street
- 447 Brawley Street
- 453 Zephyr Street
- 554 Farley Avenue
- 565 Farley Avenue
- 595 Vernon Street
- 665 Saxon Avenue
For more on the meeting from July 22, 2024, see the full video at this link.
Written by the City of Spartanburg.