Posts Tagged ‘Iroquois SD’

So what’s going on in Iroquois?

September 16th, 2009

Yesterday at the Rural Housing Playbook regional conference, we heard about a remarkable story brewing in Iroquois, SD. For the last 3-4 years, the community has focused on a housing strategy that local residents believe has helped bring in fourteen new students to their school. That’s nothing to sneeze at in a community fighting to keep its school open.

A big part of their housing strategy has been the development of Governor’s Houses by the Iroquois Housing group. In the last 3 ½ years, six Governors houses have been constructed, and a seventh is on the way. That’s remarkable for a community of 300 residents.

But what didn’t get as much attention during the conference is how Iroquois has successfully developed these home. I think that this part of the story is really remarkable because many other rural communities have been only moderately successful or not at all. So what has Iroquois figured out?

Four Tips for successfully developing Governors Houses

I’m sure there’s no easy answer to my above question. But as I listened to their story, I heard the following 4 tips that I think have helped Iroquois be successful.

1. Create a good hook: For Iroquois, the hook has been a $4000 gift to anyone who buys a Governors House. This means that a community has to have a pool of money it can use for this purpose and is willing to give that money away. But at the end of the day, offering an incentive like this is just good marketing.

2. Keep your development costs low: It probably goes without saying that keeping the development costs low will make selling a house more attractive, but there’s another reason this is important for Governors Houses. The income qualifications limit the number of individuals who can qualify. If the development costs are too high, the individuals who qualify can’t afford it - even though they qualify. In Iroquois, everyone - from the volunteers, to the contractor, and to the city - has made contributions to keep the costs low. That’s what it takes.

3. Community members need to be champions: If your community has a malcontent who meets potential homeowners, selling any houses in your community can be pretty tough. In Iroquois, the opposite appears to be true. There, we heard a story about a grocer who rolled out his best salesmanship skills to convince a couple, who had stopped in at his store, that Iroquois was right for them.

4. Make sure you have good financing options: Many individuals finance the purchase of Governors Houses with USDA 504 loans, USDA direct loans, and SDHDA First-time homebuyer programs. But Iroquois residents have additional financing options offered by NESDEC and BASEC. The added resources provided by organizations like these can be invaluable to closing the deal.

In sum, it really takes a team effort to make the project work. And the team in Iroquois has been getting the job done.