Newcomb CrossMod helps launch MOVE-IN NY program

ALBANY | Gov. Kathy Hochul has announced the launch of "MOVE-IN NY," an innovative affordable homeownership program she championed, which was successfully piloted with the creation of three new starter homes in the Cities of Schenectady, Syracuse, and the Town of Newcomb. The program is now expanding statewide to build up to 200 additional starter homes. "This groundbreaking initiative has the potential to revolutionize the way we create high-quality, beautifully designed starter homes in New York," Gov. Hochul said Sept. 22. "With the cooperation of our local partners in urban, rural, and suburban areas of the state, the MOVE-IN program will help address the rising cost of housing and enable more New Yorkers to afford a home of their own and achieve the dream of homeownership." The pilot program in the first three communities was a collaboration between New York State Homes and Community Renewal, and Champion Homes, a manufactured housing company based in the town of Sangerfield in Oneida County. The three-bedroom, two-bathroom, 1,500-square-foot homes, which include a porch and a garage, were manufactured in a factory and then installed on vacant land owned by local land banks. The homes took six months to complete and cost approximately $250,000 to build and install — which is up to three times faster and nearly half the cost of comparably sized homes built using traditional construction methods. The homes will be sold for less than the cost of construction to low and moderate-income homebuyers. In connection with expanding the program, New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) will open a Request for Applications (RFA) at 4 p.m. ET. Interested local governments, land banks, non-profit housing developers and home manufacturers can learn more and apply to participate by visiting hcr.ny.gov/moveinny. Throughout New York, smaller, more affordable homes — often referred to as "starter homes" — have become increasingly scarce, preventing young individuals and families from becoming first-time homeowners and older New Yorkers from downsizing. In recent years, construction costs, materials and interest rates have skyrocketed, making the typical cost to construct a small, single-family home in New York upwards of $450,000 or more. The MOVE-IN NY program harnesses the benefits of prefabricated homes to quickly build more affordable starter homes in communities throughout New York. The program is supported by $50 million secured in the FY 2025-26 Enacted State Budget. The factory-built homes used in the MOVE-IN NY program can be built quickly and economically, at a large scale. Referred to as "CrossMods," these homes resemble traditional single-family homes and can be integrated in all types of housing markets including urban, suburban, and rural communities. CrossMods are built to the Federal HUD Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards Code and meet design guidelines approved by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which enables homebuyers to access conventional mortgages. The expansion of MOVE-IN NY will seek to work with communities with a high volume of residentially zoned vacant land, and localities where affordable homeownership opportunities are out of reach for residents. HCR will also continue to explore additional innovations in factory-built starter homes to construct other models, such as townhomes and other multi-story houses, that could serve more densely populated communities and neighborhoods. This program complements HCR's work to advance affordable homeownership, including its Affordable Homeownership Opportunity Program, its Manufactured Home Advantage Program, and its State of New York Mortgage Agency's suite of homebuyer mortgage programs. In Newcomb, Colden Place is one of the first starter homes made available through New York's MOVE-IN program in partnership with the Essex County Land Bank. Essex County Land Bank President & CEO Nicole Justice Green said, "Launching this CrossMod home in Newcomb marks a transformational moment for the Essex County Land Bank and for rural communities across the state, especially those within the Adirondack Park. As one of the first rural land banks in New York, we are proving that innovative housing models can take root even in the most remote corners of the state. This project demonstrates what's possible when state and local partners work together to bring attainable, high-quality homes to the people who need them most."

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Newcomb CrossMod helps launch MOVE-IN NY program

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