Boston – MassHousing has provided $17.6 million in affordable housing financing to the Claremont Companies for the refinancing of the 200-unit Solemar at South Dartmouth. The refinancing of the mixed-income senior citizen community preserves the affordability of the property’s 100 affordable units through 2034.
Solemar at South Dartmouth
“This transaction provides a great outcome for the residents of Solemar at South Dartmouth, and for the Claremont Companies,” said MassHousing Executive Director Tim Sullivan.
The Claremont Companies refinanced the senior housing community through MassHousing’s Multifamily Accelerated Processing (MAP)/Ginnie Mae Joint Venture Initiative with lender partner Rockport Mortgage Corporation. MassHousing offers the MAP/Ginnie Mae loan program to the owners of rental housing through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD approves mortgages in the MAP program for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insurance.
The combination of FHA insurance and a Ginnie Mae guarantee enables borrowers to access mortgage financing with lower interest rates, while preserving and extending affordability for hundreds of low-income senior citizens and families. The $17.6 million refinancing allowed the Claremont Companies to refinance three existing MassHousing loans, with interest rates of 7.00 percent, 7.05 percent, and 7.69 percent, into a single mortgage with a 3.40 percent interest rate.
Built in 1977, the Solemar at South Dartmouth contains 200 mixed-income rental units, across 25 buildings. Fifty of the affordable units are rented to residents earning at or below 50 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), and 50 are rented to residents earning at or below 80 percent of AMI. The remaining 100 units are rented at market rates.
