Are you thinking of buying your first home in Florida? Would you like a free gift of money to help you purchase that first home? If you answered yes to these two questions, there is great news for you. The state of Florida provides free grant money for its residents who are first time home buyers and need help with the down payment and closing costs, but does not issue grants directly to individual citizens. This money comes in the form of community development grants. This is free money that shouldn’t be passed up! The grant awards can be in the thousands of dollars. It will be well worth your time to educate yourself about various grant programs that the State of Florida provides.
The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program was created by Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974. The primary statutory objective of the program is to develop viable communities by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment and by expanding economic opportunities, principally for persons of low- and moderate-income. This general objective is achieved by concentrating on activities which benefit low- and moderate-income families. The program can also aid in the prevention or elimination of slums or blight, and under unique circumstances, the State may also use its funds to meet urgent community development needs. A need is considered urgent if it poses a serious and immediate threat to the health or welfare of the community and has arisen in the past 18 months.
Here is the contact info for the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity:
Department of Economic Opportunity
107 East Madison Street
Caldwell Building
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-4120
Phone: 850-245-7105
Florida Grants
The agency in Florida that provides grant assistance is The Florida Housing and Community Development. There are several such grants available, depending upon the program and your income. To find out which grant programs you may qualify for, please visit the Florida Housing and Community Development website which describes all the grant programs in detail.
Federal Grants
Besides the state programs, there are federal funds and grants available to home buyers in Florida through the Homes and Communities program of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. On their website you’ll find complete grant information, application forms, description of available funds, as well as many other helpful tools.
Every potential first time home buyer should investigate what they have to offer. You can visit the website by going here: US Dept. of Housing and Urban Development. Also, there is a website that has a complete list of all grant programs available through the United States Federal Government: Grants.gov. First time home buyers should plan to spend the required time investigating to determine how many individual grants they may qualify for. You can visit the website by going to Grants.gov and search on this website.
Other Grants in Florida
In addition to the grant programs described above, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development provides home buyer assistance and grants in every state. There are multiple grant programs designed specifically for people that meet certain requirements, such as grants for people with disabilities so they can continue to live independently at home. It is worth visiting HUD’s website to see what assistance is currently available. For your convenience, simply go to this page.
Here is the contact information for the HUD office in Florida:
Jacksonville Field Office
Charles East Bennett Federal Building
400 West Bay Street
Suite 1015
Jacksonville, FL 32202
Phone: (904) 232-2627
Fax: (904) 232-3759
There are a multitude of local programs in Florida:
Alachula County State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program (SHIP) (352) 374-5249
Baker County- State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) (904) 259-3613
Bay County State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program (SHIP) (850) 234-6358
Boca Raton State Housing Initiatives Partnership Homebuyer Assistance Program (SHIP) (561) 393-7758
Bonita Springs Area Housing Development Corporation- SHIP Down Payment / Closing Cost Assistance (SHIP) (239) 652-7938
Bradenton Housing Assistance Program (HAP) (941) 714-7509
Brevard County First Time Home Buyer Program (321) 633-2075
Cape Coral Down Payment Assistance Program (DPAP) (239) 573-1222
Citrus County SHIP Down payment Closing Costs Assistance Program (DCCAP) (352) 527-5377
Clearwater Down Payment/Closing Cost Assistance Program (DPCCA) (727) 562-4030
Columbia County State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program (SHIP) (386) 362-4115
Deltona SHIP Purchase Assistance Program (386) 561-2200
DeSoto County State Housing Initiative Program (SHIP) (863) 993-4858
Escambia County- SHIP Affordable Housing Initiative Program New Construction (AHIP) (850) 458-0464
Flagler County State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program (SHIP) (386) 437-7484
Gainesville Central Florida Community Action Agency, Inc. HOME Purchase Deferred Grant Assistance Program (HOME) (352) 373-7667
Gainesville Neighborhood Housing & Development Corporation (NHDC) HOME Subsidy Program (HSP) (352) 380-9112
Gainesville SHIP Down payment Assistance Program (SHIP) (352) 334-5026
Hardee County, State Housing Initiatives Partnership Home Ownership Assistance Program (SHIP) (863) 773-6349
Hendry County State Housing Initiative Partnership Program (SHIP) (863) 675-5297
Hernando County SHIP Down Payment Assistance Program (DPAP) (352) 754-4160
Hillsborough County Heritage Housing Inc First Time Homebuyer Program (FTHP) (813) 961-5990
Hillsborough County Housing & Education Alliance First Time Homebuyers Program (813) 744-5557
Hillsborough County Tampa Bay CDC Assistance Program (AP) (813) 744-5557
Lakeland Keystone Challenge Fund Inc State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program (SHIP) (863) 682-1025
Lee County SHIP Down Payment/Closing Cost Assistance (239) 652-7938
Levy County SHIP Purchase Assistance (SHIP) (352) 486-5268
Manatee County Infill Assistance Program (941) 749-3030
Manatee County SHIP Down Payment & Closing Cost Assistance Program (DAP) (941) 749-3030
Melbourne Purchase Assistance Program (PAP) (321) 253-0053
Monroe County First Time Homebuyer Program (SHIP) (305) 292-1221
Multi County Autographed Book Give-Away for Inner City Youth Inc Affordable Housing Program (407) 426-8597
Multi County Clearwater Neighborhood Housing Services, Inc. Down Payment Assistance Program (DPAP) (727) 442-4155
Okaloosa County Okaloosa Community Development Corporation Down Payment/Closing Cost Assistance Program (850) 651-7376
Okeechobee County State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program (SHIP) (863) 763-6731
Orange County Down Payment Assistance Program (DPAP) (407) 836-4240
Orlando Down payment Assistance Program (DAP) (407) 246-2708
Osceola County State Housing Initiatives Partnership Housing Assistance Program (SHIP) (407) 343-3105
Palm Bay Down Payment Assistance Program (DPAP) (321) 409-8181
Palm Beach County Hardship “B” Second Mortgage Subsidy Program (SMS) (561) 233-3650
Pasco County Homebuyer Assistance Program (HAP) (813) 847-8970
Pinellas CountyTampa Bay Community Development Corporation Homeownership Assistance Program (HAP) (727) 442-7075
Polk County Keystone Challenge Fund Inc State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program (SHIP) (863) 682-1025
Santa Rosa County SHIP Deferred Program Loan (850) 595-8910
Sarasota County Down Payment Assistance Program (DPAP) (941) 951-3640
St. Cloud Deer Creek Subdivision Affordable Housing Program (AHP) (850) 488-4197
St. Cloud Deer Creek Subdivision HOME Ownership Program (HOME) (850) 488-4197
St. Petersburg Hope VI Program (HVI) (727) 893-7615
St. Petersburg W.I.N Homebuyers Down payment & Closing Cost Assistance Program (WIN) (727) 893-7247
Tampa Deferred Payment Loan (DPL) (813) 274-7977
Union County Suwannee River Economic Council Inc SHIP Program (SHIP) (386) 362-4115
Volusia County State Housing Initiatives Partnership Down Payment Assistance Program (SHIP) (386) 736-5955
Winterhaven Keystone Challenge Fund Inc State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program (SHIP) (863) 682-1025
