Middle-class Americana lies hidden in the stretch of a few blocks off Military Road in Buffalo. The 109 split levels, raised ranches and town homes—tucked behind a Home Depot—come with the joys that go with homeownership: the swing sets, barbecue grills and backyard pools.

Rebecca Park looks like a suburban neighborhood— but with a twist.

Those who bought houses here in the 1980s moved in because of a program that lopped anywhere from $10,000 to $25,000 off their mortgages. The typical buyer got a $70,000 home for $58,000.

“For us, it was awesome,” said Diane M. Cwik, who moved into a 1,564-square-foot house in 1988 with her husband, Thomas. “We were poor folk then. We probably wouldn’t have had such a nice new home just on my husband’s paycheck.” The subsidizing of the American Dream worked.

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Of Buffalo’s four dozen subsidized developments with 10 or more homes, Rebecca Park is the most successful.

When Rebecca Park’s homeowners went to sell, their houses sold not only for more than what they paid, but beyond the subsidized price as well.

At least 61 homes have resold since Rebecca Park opened in 1987. Of the three dozen sales in which full sales information was available, the average selling price was 10 percent above what the homes first sold for. And they sold for 35 percent above what homeowners paid out of pocket, given the subsidies they received.

The Cwiks’ home is assessed today at some $30,000 more than what they paid for it.

“We love it here,” she said, citing friendly neighbors, the quiet and safety of the area, and the privacy of living on a cul-de-sac.

“It all has to do with the neighborhood,” she said.

But other experiences for subsidized homebuyers did not turn out as well across the city.

Look at Welker Street. Located just off Jefferson Avenue and East Utica Street, Welker Street was a busy construction zone in 1999 and 2000, when six homes were built as part of the St. Nicholas Place development.

By 2008, all six homebuyers lost their homes to foreclosure. They sold for 40 percent of their initial price—even less than their subsidized price.

When built, the initial price of the six houses combined was $518,500. When subsidies were factored in, the homebuyers paid $365,430. The last time these homes sold, their combined price was $313,027.

Tameka Jenkins said she and her husband made a $500 down payment in February 2000 and committed to monthly mortgage payments of $556 on a new $89,900 home behind Frank E. Merriweather Jr. Library on Jefferson Avenue. Given a $25,000 subsidy, they were responsible for paying the remaining $64,900.

Just 19 years old, she was seven months’ pregnant with her fourth child when she moved in. Her husband was 21.

“You couldn’t beat that deal with a broomstick,” she said.

“The house was nice, very well built,” she said. “The neighborhood was peaceful. Everything went so smooth.” Then marital problems struck. “I only moved out because of marital problems,” she said.

She said she could have afforded the mortgage payments on her own and was willing to continue making them—but only if her husband’s name was taken off the title. The bank wouldn’t go along. Three years after she moved in, she abandoned her new home.

She now lives four blocks away in a rental unit— paying $100 more a month in rent than her old monthly mortgage payment.

“I doubt I’ll get that kind of deal again,” she said of her prospects of owning a home again.

plakamp@buffnews.comnull