Down payment Assistance for First Time Home Buyers In Georgia

You have been looking for a home for what seems like forever.  You finally found one and are now ready to make an offer.  Your agent is telling you to be ready for with a strong offer plus a down payment and closing costs and that sounds like a lot of money.  Well, you’re right!  It is a lot of money.  You’re buying a house!  But there are programs for Georgians just like you who need some help.  Consider the Georgia Dream Homeownership Program.  

Georgia Dream offers affordable mortgages, down payment assistance and money to help with closing costs and prepaid items when making your home purchase.  This program offers between $5,000 and $7,500 as a loan to low and middle income Georgia residents who meet certain qualifications.  The down payment assistance is a 0% interest loan with no monthly payment.  A second mortgage lien is placed on your property that when you sell, refinance or no longer occupy your property as a primary residence must be paid back. 

Down payment Loan Options:

• $5,000: Standard Loan: All eligible home buyers may qualify
• $7,500: Protectors, Educators and Nurses (PEN Loan): Public Protectors, Educators Healthcare Providers and Healthcare Industry workers, Active Military
• $7,500: Choice Loan: Is a member of your family living with a disability?

To qualify for this program you must able to answer yes to one of these questions:

• You a first-time home buyer OR
• You have not owned a home in the past three years OR
• You are purchasing a home in a targeted area AND your household income does not exceed the amounts in the table below.

Targeted Areas In Georgia	Income Limits

To qualify for the program you must also meet the following requirements:

• Have liquid assets of no more than $20,000 or 20% of the sales price (whichever is greater) AND
• Met mortgage loan credit requirements

Please visit www.gadream.com to find a list of participating lenders or call 1-800-359-HOME.  They will help you pre-qualify and begin the loan mortgage process. 

Just to set expectations, you must have a minimum middle credit score of 640 to be considered for this program so be sure you meet that minimum.   For other details, please visit the following website that provides all the details about Georgia Dream.  What if you don’t have a 640?  Don’t worry, there are programs for you as well.  Check out the “Ready, Set, Go” program at http://www.ehomeamerica.org/dca for more information.

The process takes about 60 days to complete from the time you turn in an application to your closing date so be patient.  What’s the most common reason for delays? Incomplete or missing paperwork.  Be sure to double and triple check that you have everything the lender is asking for before you submit your application.  Here’s a PRO tip, always keep copies of what you submit.  It doesn’t happen often but sometimes things get lost.  Scan both sides of every document you send and keep a copy of everything just in case something terrible happens and you need to resubmit your paper work. 

You may be asking yourself, how do I apply? Well, Georgia Dream does not provide loans directly.  You need to work with a participating lender to get the loan.  They will handle all the applications for FHA, USDA-RD, VA or conventional loans.

Georgia Dream does require that all applicants attend a Housing Counseling class, workshop or one-on-one counseling session that is provided by HUD-approved Counseling agencies.  To sign up for a session, you need to visit http://www.ehomeamerica.org/dca.  The charge for these classes can range from $50 to $100.

Ready to get started?  Check out the list of participating lenders and get prequalified.  Make sure to schedule and attend the counseling session or workshop as required by Georgia Dream.  Get busy looking for your dream home!