Glacier Country News

On May 23, 2024, Congressman Ryan Zinke announced his cosponsorship of H.R. 3170, the bipartisan Homes for Every Local Protector, Educator, and Responder (HELPER) Act. The HELPER Act aims to establish a new home loan program under the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) to facilitate homeownership for K-12 school teachers, first responders, law enforcement officers, and other essential public servants by removing barriers such as high down payments and monthly mortgage insurance premiums.

“In Montana the housing crisis is very real – both in terms of affordability and availability – and unfortunately our first responders, educators, and law enforcement officers are being priced out of the communities they serve,” said Congressman Zinke. “The available homes are overvalued and buyers suffer from record high interest rates and high construction costs for new homes due to inflation. Higher listing price means big down payments and big monthly payments on mortgage insurance for middle-class buyers on top of high interest and monthly payments. While we need a whole-scale change in leadership at the presidential level to get interest rates and inflation down, I’m proud to sponsor the HELPER Act to eliminate some barriers and get teachers, firefighters and police officers into the door of home ownership.”

Bozeman Police Department Chief Jim Veltkamp expressed support for the bill: “Bozeman Police Officers selflessly serve our community every day by performing essential, dangerous, and difficult tasks. They do it to ensure the highest quality of life possible for our community members, knowing they may not be able to afford a home due to the extremely high cost of living here. The HELPER ACT would be a substantial step forward in making home ownership more affordable for them so they can continue serving this community. Thank you to Rep. Ryan Zinke for stepping forward to support this important bill.”

Montana faces significant challenges with overvalued homes; a recent analysis places the median list price at $649,000. Combined with record-high inflation, first responders and educators are experiencing severe financial strain. The HELPER Act seeks to address these issues by making homeownership more accessible.

The key provisions of the HELPER Act include:

- Creating a one-time-use home loan program through FHA for law enforcement officers, firefighters, Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT), paramedics, and pre-K through 12 teachers who are first-time homebuyers.

- Eliminating down payment requirements on mortgages.

- Removing monthly mortgage insurance premium (MIP) requirements.

- Requiring an upfront mortgage insurance premium (UFMIP) to ensure program solvency.

Earlier this month during a Congressional hearing on May 2nd, Congressman Zinke questioned HUD Secretary Adrianne Todman about diverting $4.5 million from Montana Housing Authority reserves. These reserves provide financial assistance for renters in Montana facing extreme affordability issues due to decades-high inflation and rising housing costs. According to MHA estimates, rescinding these reserves affected approximately 576 Montana families' access to housing assistance. Zinke urged immediate action from the administration so that existing contracts could proceed without interruption.

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