You’ve saved and saved, and you want to buy a home. With interest rates above 7% and prices remaining high due to strong demand and low inventory, you may wonder if your down payment is enough, and if homeownership is even a possibility. Good news! There is a new program that is offered through the Los Angeles Housing Department designed to help first-time home buyers.
The Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD) is offering low-income purchase assistance and moderate-income purchase assistance to assist first-time home buyers to purchase homes within the City of Los Angeles. These programs provide homebuyers purchase assistance in the form of a deferred payment, “soft-second” loan for down payment, acquisition, and closing costs. The LAHD programs follow a shared appreciation approach to homeownership and are due upon the sale of the property, transfer of title, first mortgage repayment, or when the buyer no longer occupies the home as a primary residence. This means you do not pay back the purchase assistance until you sell the home or convert it into a secondary residence. If the market declines and you don’t make a profit when you sell or transfer title, it’s the City’s loss, not yours.
The goal is to give more borrowers the chance to buy a home as first-time homebuyers with assistance from Los Angeles County while offering a shared appreciation approach. The program offers deferred, 0% interest rates on their assistance.
This program is only available within the City of Los Angeles, and the maximum amount of assistance is $161,000. There is also a minimum borrower contribution of 1% of the purchase price. Depending on how much money you’ve saved and plan on contributing, and the price of the property you’re buying, this program can cover some or all of your down payment, and even help with closing costs! For more details and information on qualifying, please reach out to me directly and I’ll put you in touch with my preferred lenders.
