Res 0041-2022

By the Public Advocate (Mr. Williams) and Council Members Hanif, Yeger, Louis, Brooks-Powers, Dinowitz, Menin and Holden Whereas, The United States Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) helps service members, veterans and eligible surviving spouses to become homeowners by offering a home loan; and Whereas, Home loans offered by the VA, known as VA loans, are provided by private lenders such as banks and mortgage companies; and Whereas, The VA guarantees a portion of the home loan, which enables the lender to provide favorable terms; and Whereas, The New York Times published an article titled, "A Loan Program for Veterans Comes Wrapped in Red Tape", on June 10, 2013, which identified obstacles to using the VA loan to purchase a condominium or cooperative apartment in New York; and Whereas, The New York Times article highlights three challenges: 1) New York real estate firms have no experience with VA loans, 2) VA loans can only be used to purchase a condominium if the entire building applies to the VA for approval and 3) cooperative buildings are excluded from the VA loan program; and Whereas, According to the National Association of Housing Cooperatives, more than 1.2 million families in the United States live in homes owned and operated through a cooperative association and most of these units are located in major urban areas such as Chicago, San Francisco and New York City; and Whereas, Cooperative units are often a less expensive housing option when compared to condominium units or single-family houses; and Whereas, Veterans seeking to find a home in New York City or other major urban areas should have similar home buying support as veterans who purchase homes in suburban or rural areas; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls on Congress to pass, and the President to sign, legislation that allows service members, veterans and eligible surviving spouses to use the United States Department of Veteran Affairs home loans to purchase cooperative apartments. Session 12 NLB LS 1107 12/30/21 Session 11 JLC LS# 6273