State Programs Offer Help to Home Buyers

Several state programs are available to help qualifying home buyers come up with a down payment.

First-time home buyers with low or moderate incomes may qualify for a “junior” mortgage loan through the California Homebuyer’s Down Payment Assistance Program, administered by the California Housing Finance Agency. The program provides a deferred-payment, 3% interest-rate loan for up to 3% of the appraised value of the home, to be applied toward the down payment.

The state considers a first-time home buyer to be anyone who has not owned a home as his or her primary residence in the last three years.

Another program, called the School Facility Fee Down Payment Assistance Program, offers grants to cover a portion of the down payment on a home for moderate-income, first-time home buyers. Originally offered to low-income home buyers, the program was recently changed to include moderate-income families. If the buyer stays in the home for five years, the grant does not have to be paid back.

In Los Angeles County, the moderate-income limit for a family of four is $62,500.

Another aspect of the School Facility program was recently changed to offer down-payment assistance on the purchase of a new single-family home, townhome or condominium costing up to $130,000. Originally, the limit was $110,000.

For more information or to request an application, call (800) 323-8718 or (916) 322-3991, or see the California Housing Finance Agency’s Web site at https://www.chfa.ca.gov on the Internet.