Interest payments over time could actually bring the total cost to $15 billion.
Taxpayers will save $1.4 billion in interest payments over the life of the bonds.
Under the law, lenders have to calculate a customer's ability to shoulder the principal and interest payments over the life of a mortgage.
The lower rate would save a borrower about $30,000 in interest payments over the life of a $300,000 mortgage.
By selling the bonds, the town said it was saving money -- nearly $1 million in interest payments over three years, to be exact.
For a $150,000 mortgage, a difference of three percentage points — the typical spread between a conventional and subprime loan — tacks on $90,000 in interest payments over its 30-year life.
A bond investor lends money to the issuer and, in exchange, the issuer promises to repay the loan amount on a specified maturity date; the issuer generally pays the bondholder periodic interest payments over the life of the bond.
Joseph Sawicki Jr., Suffolk's comptroller, said that he expected the bond ratings to remain for a year, enabling the county to save an estimated $500,000 in interest payments over the life of five bond offerings this year.
