The city of Farrell has some new affordable housing.
602 Spearman Avenue is a newly built three-bedroom two- bathroom home that was made possible by the Affordable Housing Program. The house is valued at nearly $260,000 but the new buyer will move in for just $110,000.
Those with qualifying incomes apply to the program and are able to get hefty discounts on newly built or renovated houses.
Farrell has had several affordable homes built throughout the city with the program. As a city that has seen a population decline, city manager Shawn Anderson hopes making more houses will either keep numbers steady or go back up.
“A large issue especially with keeping younger generations is they have to come back to some kind of housing,” Anderson said. “They don’t want to move in with their parents and there's not many apartment buildings here so any new housing program we can have in place that helps not only keep people, but it helps attract other people.”
The contractor for the house on Spearman Avenue is Farrell native Donna Pyles who has years of experience flipping houses and doing home renovations.
“I’m hoping that people will come in and be happy,” Pyles said, “I’m hoping that families that did not have the opportunity to have a brand new home to imagine what that's like to experience the opportunity to walk into a house that no one else has been in but you.”
The city of Farrell plans to apply for more grants through the Affordable Housing Program and hopes to build four more homes in the city.