NORWICH – Opportunities for Chenango is seeking another round of a state sponsored grant that it says has proven to be a tremendous benefit for first time home buyers in Chenango County.

The agency began the process of applying for a $350,000 Community Development Block Grant this month to help fund its First Time Home Buyer program, an initiative started to educate potential buyers about the facts of homeownership and the home buying process. If awarded, it would be the seventh time Opportunities for Chenango is able to offer the program.

“This is a program that we have been able to fund six times before, and it’s been successful,” said Karen Glasbergen, Housing Director for OFC. “If we are awarded, it will help put 14 low-income home buyers into their new homes.”

OFC’s First Time Home Buyer program has served 109 individuals and families to date, giving them up to $23,000 in grants for a downpayment on a new home and to help offset closing costs. The program is available to potential homeowners who meet certain criteria and earn up to 80 percent of the county median annual income ($51,650 per year for a family of four).

The sixth round of the program is still underway, said Glasbergen; but plans are to keep up to date records to vouch for the seventh round. Opportunities for Chenango is currently collecting survey information that will help in the process, she added. Surveys have been distributed to towns and villages county-wide, as well as libraries, the Department of Social Services, Head Start, and the county planning department. It’s also available online at ofcinc.org.