If you’re a first time home buyer looking for some assistance, you’ll be happy to hear that there is plenty of local, state, and federal aid available to facilitate the purchase of your first residence. There is a wide variety of reinforcement that you can tap to help ease the financial burden of acquiring your first dwelling.
Some of that assistance takes the form of an outright cash gift, also known as a “grant.” These are the most popular forms of support available to 1st time property buyers. Often, a down payment grant can mean the difference between getting approved for a mortgage or not. We want to make it extremely easy for you to learn about what grant compensation is available in your locale. That’s why we created a directory of all the down payment and closing cost grants available in each state. This form of backing should not be overlooked.
Besides outright cash gifts, there are other promotions available to people to help with their initial home purchase. The most common of these is the low interest rate home loan for first time buyers. While these programs take a different form than an outright cash gift, they do provide a great deal of value and sustenance. To find out the support that is available in your area, simply go to our directory at this page.
Various Forms of Homebuyer Compensation in Each State
Most of the state legislatures have passed laws that established quasi-governmental agencies that provide a financial boost to new buyers who are in need. In California, for instance, the California Housing Finance Agency provides a variety of programs, “CalHFA offers a variety of first mortgage and down payment assistance programs. You can find details on all of these programs under the Loan Programs tab.”
In nearly every state, abatement, relief, backing, support and other forms that provide a helping hand to first time home owners are readily available. In Texas, for instance, the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs features these promotions, “Effective October 2012, TDHCA announced the release of $600 million in homebuyer assistance — the largest amount ever offered by the state — through a new mortgage-backed securities initiative that provides qualifying borrowers a number of advantages over the Department’s previous single family bond program.
My First Texas Home’s “Taxable Mortgage Program” (TMP-79) offers more competitive fixed interest and annual percentage rates while providing down payment and closing cost assistance of 5 percent of the mortgage loan.
Plus, TMP funds can be combined with the Department’s Mortgage Credit Certificate Program, further increasing the home’s affordability. The program features a number of other benefits homebuyers will find attractive; however, current eligibility guidelines still apply.
All of this is available from the state agency synonymous with responsible homeownership. Beginning with its predecessor, the Texas Housing Agency, TDHCA has a long track record as a safe, trustworthy source of homebuyer assistance with 32 years of experience and expertise in working with low to moderate income homebuyers.
To learn more about TDHCA’s TMP, its many benefits or to find a participating lender near you, please visit My First Texas Home or call toll-free 800-792-1119.
For current available program funds please visit the Available Funds page.
Learn more and apply through any of our participating lenders for a My First Texas Home 30-year fixed annual percentage rate mortgage loan, and downpayment and closing cost assistance.”
The names for the various first time home buyer promotions vary from state to state. So, too, do the agency names. In New York, the New York State Homes and Community Renewal Agency provides various forms of aid to first time buyers. From the official website, “The affiliated agencies of “nyhomes” offer various programs that can help you buy or rent an affordable home.
The Home Buyers section provides detailed information about:
How to get a low interest rate mortgage and down payment assistance from SONYMA
How to get a grant from AHC to construct or rehabilitate single family housing
The Home Owners section provides information about:
How to get a SONYMA mortgage even if you aren’t a first time homebuyer
How to get a grant from AHC to rehabilitate the home you already own
How to get a loan from HFA to buy your Manufactured Home Park”
In addition to statewide programs, anyone looking for endowments to help with buying their first property should check with the county and local municipalities. The statewide programs are more widely known and publicized, while the local programs receive less visibility.
In Flordia, the Florida Housing Finance Coproration provides charity to first time property buyers in the form of two programs, “The Program makes purchasing a home more affordable for low-to-moderate income families and individuals by offering fixed, low-interest rate mortgage loans. In addition, Florida Housing also offers down payment and closing costs assistance to eligible borrowers, which can greatly reduce the out of pocket expense to the buyer.
Your county or city government may offer down payment and closing costs assistance to eligible borrowers to make a home more affordable for low-to-moderate income families and individuals. This financing, and other opportunities to help you become a homeowner, are provided through your local State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) program.”
Lastly, be sure to bookmark this page (as well as other pages of this website) so that you can come back and check the information regularly. We keep very close track of all the various assistance programs in each state on a daily basis. When new subsidies and incentives are offered, we will be the first to provide that information to our readers. Our goal is to provide the most up-to-date, most complete directory of all the programs that offer assistance to first time buyers.
And if you’ve found this information helpful, please do share it with others!