The city of Brockton and NeighborWorks Southern Mass. are sponsoring a new homeownership that will provide $400,000 in down payment grants to first-time buyers.

The program was announced yesterday at a community breakfast titled, "Moving Homeownership Forward Together," and will aim to create 40 first-time homeowners by providing them with up to $10,000 each in down payment assistance. The city is funding 75 percent of the grants through its Community Development Block Grant funding, with NeighborWorks Southern Mass. contributing the remaining 25 percent. 

"It is really hard for working families to save up for a down payment," Brockton Mayor Bill Carpenter said in a statement. "This is the obstacle preventing them from buying their first homes, and this is the obstacle we are going to eliminate with this down payment program with NeighborWorks." 

The breakfast event also included the presentation of Good Neighbor Awards to Stephen Pike of North Easton Savings Bank and the Brockton Housing Partnership, and to Plymouth County Register of Deeds John Buckley in recognition of its efforts to create new Brockton homeowners while helping current homeowners remain in their homes.