U.S. Cities and Nonprofits Offer Incentives to Attract Remote Workers and Homebuyers

Wayne, Indiana The Fort Wayne Housing Authority sponsors Hoosier Homes Plus, a down payment assistance program for first-time and repeat homebuyers moving to Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The program offers buyers up to 5% of the home's purchase price for down payment and closing costs. Applicants must work with an approved lender and have a minimum credit score of 640. Eligibility requires a household income at or below the county-specific limit of $126,000.

First-time homebuyers are required to complete a homebuyer education course.

in Hamilton, Ohio Hamilton, Ohio, a city of 63,000 people located about 20 miles north of Cincinnati, encourages recent college graduates to apply for its Talent Attraction Program Scholarship.

Recipients can get up to $15,000 a year toward student loan payments. To qualify, applicants must have graduated from a STEAM program within the last seven years. Applicants must not already live in the city of Hamilton but have plans to move or live in one of its urban neighborhoods.

They must also demonstrate employment within Butler County or a full-time remote position.

in Hutchinson, Kansas Hutchinson, Kansas, a city of about 40,000 people in south central Kansas, offers renters who move into qualifying neighborhoods up to $2,500 in matching funds to purchase their first home.

Qualifying neighborhoods include College Grove, Creekside, Founders, Grace Arbor, Houston Whiteside Historic District, and Midtown.

in Jackson, Michigan Jackson, Michigan, a city of about 31,000 people in south-central Michigan, operates the 100 Home Program, which plans to construct 100 one- and two-bedroom homes on vacant residential lots across Jackson, each priced at $175,000.

The city offers up to $25,000 in down payment assistance for eligible applicants earning up to 120% of the area's median income. Buyers are encouraged to apply for an extra $10,000 in assistance through the Michigan State Housing Development Authority.

Our Appalachian Region (SOAR), a nonprofit founded to reverse population loss in the rural, mountainous regions of Kentucky, offers relocation grants of $5,000 to remote workers who move to one of 34 eligible counties in eastern Kentucky.

An additional $2,500 bonus is available if their partner secures a job in education or healthcare. Applicants must make $70,000 and currently reside outside Kentucky. The 34 eligible counties include a scenic network of canyons called the Red River Gorge and the Country Music Highway Museum dedicated to artists from the region like Billy Ray Cyrus and The Judds.

in Ketchikan, Alaska Ketchikan, Alaska, a scenic coastal city near the southernmost tip of Alaska that is a 90-minute flight from Seattle, launched the Choose Ketchikan program in November 2021.

The program pays up to $2,000 a year to live there and provides free internet. Applicants must be over 18 and fully employed. To be eligible, an individual or family must currently live outside Alaska while working remotely for a company that is also outside Alaska.

After relocation to Alaska, all Alaska residents get an annual payment from Alaska's Permanent Fund Dividend, which can be as much as $3,000 a year or more. U.S. communities.