Christopher and Debbie Hayes are the new residents of 102 S. State Road 101. They bought the brick house with two car garage just a few miles outside Milan. The Hayes and their two children, Steven and Ralynn, moved in June 23 after closing on the property the day before. Yet without the help of the USDA Rural Development program, their new home would never have been possible.

“We wanted to try to get out of the rental game,” Chris said. They had been renting for several years, but wanted to own their own home. “We wanted a brick house. And it had everything we wanted,” Deb said regarding their new home. “I like how big it is, the area [around the house],” Ralynn said. Also, with their son Steven in a wheelchair, the family had to consider room for a ramp.

Chris met up with a former coworker, Bill Craig, vice president of FCN Bank in Sunman. Craig suggested that Chris look into one of programs with the USDA Rural Development. There Vickie McMillan, manager of Rural Development, worked with the Hayes to find a way to finance the house. Chris applied for a low-interest loan for the house with Rural Development. “Once we had the application in, it went really quick. I was very pleased,” Chris said. The loan was financed by the USDA and FCN Bank.

For financial assistance with the USDA Rural Development, applicants must meet certain requirements. They must meet income limits based on family size for the area, have a stable income, be unable to obtain financial assistance from other sources, and have an acceptable credit history. There are a number of different programs, not just for potential homeowners like the Hayes. Rural Development helps build homes and apartments, improve poor housing, buy land for community developers, renovate deteriorating housing buildings, and subsidize mortgage and rental payments.
A month and a half after Chris put in the application with USDA Rural Development, the Hayes moved into their new home. For more information about the programs offered through Rural Development, contact the local office at 1981 S. Industrial Park Road, Suite 4, Versailles, IN 47042 or call 812-689-6410 Ext. 4.

MIKE MAUNE PHOTO Bill Craig, vice president of FCN Bank, Sunman; Vickie McMillan, manager of Rural Development; Christopher and Debbie Hayes, new homeowners and children, Steven and Ralynn, are pictured in front of the Hayes' new home.