The Callaway Bank receives grant to help new rural homebuyers

First-time home buyers in Fulton and rural Callaway struggling to find something in their price range might get a little help from The Callaway Bank thanks to a recent grant.

The bank is one of eight Missouri financial institutions that been awarded a $15,000 grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines' Rural Homeownership Fund program to assist rural home buyers with down payments and closing costs.

The grant program is designed to help banks assist potential home buyers with low to moderate incomes. Applicants under certain income criteria and homes that meet certain requirements based on type, value and location are eligible. Single-family homes in Callaway County would all meet the requirement, and other homes in the area may apply as well.

The Callaway Bank President Kim Barnes said the bank applies for the grant annually, where banks are selected for the grant through a lottery system. She said this was the first year in recent memory to her knowledge that Callaway was chosen as a recipient.

To help the tornado-stricken people of Dumas and surroundings, donations can be made to the Delta Area Disaster Relief Fund, care of the Delta Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 894, Dumas, AR, 71639, or through the Arkansas Community Foundation, 700 S. Rock St., Little Rock, AR, 72202.