City of Hayward Affordable Housing

1.What does housekeys do?

HouseKeys is a Program Administration company that works alongside cities and builders to administer affordable housing programs. There are a lot of moving parts, including helping the Developer with their affordability agreements, getting the application documents set up and processed, connecting you to loan officers who are registered with the program and who agree to follow the rules, and helping to guide you through the lottery drawing, purchasing the home, and understanding the program rules. We also hold orientation classes for program applicants (e.g. home buyers) and process, review, and underwrite the application packages of prospective applicants to make sure they are eligible for the program and we try to ensure that the home purchase makes long term financial sense for the city and for the homeowner.

2.how do i apply?

Please visit the Home Buyer Info Page to see how the process is explained and illustrated. HouseKeys has an Application Management System at myhousekeys.com that is created to help facilitate your application process. You first register your household profile by answering a short group of questions, validating your email address, and answering additional questions about your household size, income, demographics, and program preference information. Once that is complete, you will enter the Program Center where you’ll see a list of housing programs. Select the City of Hayward - Hayward Affordable Homeownership Program. You will click “Request Application I.D.”, answer any pre-screening questions, and then you’ll be assigned an Application I.D. With that Application I.D. you’ll be able to enter Drawings that are posted for any available home ownership opportunities. As soon as you receive your number, you’ll see any Drawings or Opportunities for the City of Hayward Program.

3. who is eligible to buy?

For the SoHay Project, the City of Hayward defines an “Eligible Buyer” as a Household whose income does not exceed the Moderate-Income Limits published by the State of California each year. You can see this limits by visiting the state’s website. We also have the table on the home page.

You don’t have to be a first-time home buyer to be eligible to purchase a home in the SoHay Project. This is a fairly unique opportunity as most affordable home ownership programs are typically restricted to first-time home buyers.

4. What should i read right now?

Read the Restriction Agreement and Program Disclosure. The City of Hayward requires home buyers to sign a Restriction Agreement that is titled, “BUYER'S OCCUPANCY AND RESALE RESTRICTION AGREEMENT WITH OPTION TO PURCHASE”.

Click on the Green buttons to view these very important documents.

5. how are buyers selected?

Once you enter the Drawing noted above, your application will be ranked based on a randomized lottery process. If the Application Deadline has passed, and none of the lottery entrants meet the program requirements, late applicants may still have an opportunity through either a 2nd drawing or be chosen in the order in which they submitted their application and responded to our file request. When your file is requested, you will be asked to deliver it to our receiving center, so that we can begin to process your full file. Only those who receive a file request after a Drawing, will have to submit a full file with supporting documentation. It’s during this process of file review and eligibility determination where you’ll be cleared for contract, and become the buyer sent to the Seller to complete the home purchase.