DAPHNE, Ala. — Agencies in Baldwin County said they are taking steps to ensure the growing workforce — lower income families — can find affordable housing near work and schools.

During a Human Resources fair at the Daphne Civic Center on July 30, Bob Pitts, Baldwin County Housing Alliance chairman and a mortgage broker with 1st Metropolitan Mortgage, said that home buyers have options.

“The alliance is networking with builders like Benchmark Homes that sell houses between $125,000 and $175,000,” he said. “We’re also working with the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture’s direct rural housing loan program) for people that don’t make lots of money for big houses and big vacation homes.”

Basically, the process goes like this: contact a Realtor or decide on the area where you want to find a home.

“We want to coordinate with Realtors as relocation specialists,” he said. “They’d be goodwill ambassadors for those areas to tell people where employers and schools are — make the house-finding process an enjoyable one.”

They’d then contact a lender that uses loan programs through USDA, Federal Housing, Administration, Veterans Affairs, or state bonds, he said.

The lender can research the type of loan you qualify for; some are reserved for very low-income households and require no down payment, application and processing fees and where payments are based on income, Carolyn McMillan USDA rural development specialist, said.

The lender can also look at credit scores and offer advice to fix any issues, Pitts said.

“That’s the feel-good of this business; you can educate people and make them feel confident,” he said.

Filling out a housing questionnaire — which lenders can provide — will greatly cut processing time, he said.

Many specialists are ready to help potential home buyers by paying attention to families’ needs.

“There’s 100 percent financing available in certain areas,” according to Suzette Labonte-Waller, sales manager for Benchmark Homes.

“We’re here to meet a need that most conventional lenders don’t; everyone needs adequate housing,” McMillan said.

The push to provide work-force housing comes with growth, when new businesses such as Bass Pro Shops in Spanish Fort build in Baldwin County, traditionally a tourist area, Pitts said.

“Baldwin County started out as a tourist destination; people didn’t have an inventory (of affordable houses), they didn’t have options,” he said.

With these agencies working together, people should find the help they need, he said.

For more, call 980-2075 or send an e-mail to  robert.pitts@gulftel.com.