City-owned townhouse near Animas City Park in Durango hits the market again – The Durango Herald
A random selection process is used to select suitable buyers
A city-owned housing unit at the Animas City Park Overlook next to Animas City Park that was purchased for resale below market value is back on the market. (Jerry McBride/Durango Herald)
An urban townhouse in northern Durango that was intended to serve as workers’ housing is once again for sale. This time, however, it is being offered by real estate agencies.
The City of Durango took the unit off the market in June after deciding to pre-empt a perceived conflict of interest in selecting a buyer for the restricted-property, below-market-rate townhouse. The prospective buyer was a city employee who had a romantic relationship with another city housing department employee.
The relationship itself is not problematic, said city manager José Madrigal The Durango Herald at the time. But when a supervisor, former Housing Innovation Manager Eva Henson, decided not to disclose the relationship after it became known, the city put the brakes on.
This time, the city is using a random process to identify a qualified buyer, Madrigal said Friday. The unit will also appear in real estate listings and be advertised as a restricted-ownership unit.
A city-owned unit in the Animas City Park Overlook townhouses at 166 E. 33rd St. is back on the market after being unavailable for about a month and a half. The unit is being offered at its original, below-market price of $399,000. This time, the unit is being listed on sites like Zillow and advertised as a restricted condo. (Screenshot)
The unit is already listed on popular real estate brokerage websites like Zillow, Realtor.com and Redfin. On Redfin, the listing stands out on a map and is significantly cheaper than many other properties for sale. It’s marked in red and asking $400,000, amid a flood of properties marked in green with multimillion-dollar prices.
Unit 501 of the Animas City Park Overlook townhouse, which the city has purchased for resale at a below-market price to create another opportunity for workers, is significantly cheaper than many other properties listed for sale Friday on Redfin, a real estate brokerage. It is marked in red and is asking $400,000, amid a flood of green-marked properties with multimillion-dollar prices. (Screenshot)
The exact sale price of the restricted property is $399,000, the same price it was originally offered for.
Following the June controversy that led to Henson’s resignation, the city took a step back and reorganized its process for implementing the townhome offer.
Madrigal attributed the townhouse’s quick return to market to Michael French, former executive director of the La Plata County Economic Development Alliance, whom the city hired to assist with housing and tourism projects after Henson’s departure.
French said city staff did all the legwork. The city hired a realtor to list the property on Multiple Listing Service, show the home and help make sure candidates are qualified, especially first-time buyers.
Once all potential buyers are identified, HomesFund will re-evaluate qualifications and conduct a random selection process, using a computer to generate numbers and award the contract to recipients, he said.
According to a press release from the city, potential buyers must meet the following criteria:
- Buyers’ annual income must be 125% or less of La Plata County’s median annual income in 2024. For a two-person household, that’s about $110,500 or less.
- Buyers must purchase the home to use as their primary residence.
- You must work at least 32 hours per week for a local employer or have lived in La Plata County for at least one year.
- Buyers must complete an in-person homebuyer training course with HomesFund by September 21.
- Additionally, buyers must obtain a pre-approval letter from a lender to purchase.
Potential buyers who have not yet taken a HomesFund homebuyer course need to act quickly. They can register on HomesFund’s website for upcoming courses in Cortez on Aug. 17, Durango on Sept. 7 and Pagosa Springs on Sept. 21, the news release said.
In addition, your maximum annual income may not exceed the following values:
- $96,750 for a single-person household.
- $110,500 for a two-person household.
- $124,375 for a three-person household.
- And $138,125 for a four-person household.
Despite the June setback, the city considers the Animas City Park Overlook townhome project a great success. The development includes 12 market-rate and 10 deed-restricted units, six of which are for workers and four for workers making less than 125% of the area median income, the release said.
According to the city, the project won the “Best Project” award at Downtown Colorado Inc.’s annual Governor’s Awards last May for “meeting a critical community need through creative partnerships.”
