$8000 Down-Payment Assistance for First-time Buyers

According to the National Association of Realtors, the typical first-time homebuyer has only 4% of the purchase price saved for a down payment. Access to $8000 would really help a lot of on-the-fence buyers make the decision to go ahead and purchase a home if they could have access to it immediately rather than waiting for tax time. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development is now looking to help the housing market by changing the tax credit so buyers can borrow against the credit at the time of closing and use that money towards a down-payment (through Federal Housing Authority-approved lenders only). Buyers could then pay the loan back with their tax refund.

Several states have already implemented this change to help their housing markets and the federal change would most likely be modeled after one of these “bridge loan” programs. To read more, check out my source here, or check out some helpful links from our previous post on the stimulus package.

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