This is part of an overall plan to help revitalize older, potentially higher

crime neighborhoods by moving in local police officers and having them maintain a primary residence in the neighborhood. To help encourage this revitalization, the FHA makes special loans available to full time police officers who work for a city, county, state or Federal law enforcement agency.

If officers agree to live in the home as their primary residence for 3 years they are eligible for a 50% discount of the home price as well as a down payment of only $100, but in order to receive the $100 down payment option, the house must be purchased with an FHA guaranteed loan.

Teacher Next Door Program

 This is essentially the same as the officer next door program, it is also to encourage the revitalization of neighborhoods which are currently deteriorating but with a little help might recover economically. This program is available to full time teachers or administrators working in K – 12 education, teachers who work in both private and public schools are eligible.

For the guarantee that the teacher will occupy the house as a primary residence for 3 years, the teacher is eligible for a 50% discount off the house’s price and a $100 down payment option if they get an FHA loan.

Housing Action Resource Trust (HART) (this program to be discontinued 10/31/09)

HART is a California non profit company whose function is to help certain communities and provide eligible home owners with financial assistance. For people that qualify, HART will give them up to $15,000 for a down payment and closing costs. The buyer must put down 1% of the down payment out of his own money. This money is “gifted” and doesn’t need to be repaid. As part of the agreement, the buyer must attend some credit counseling or home ownership responsibility classes. The HART money can be used to purchase a single family home or a multi unit property with up to 4 units.

CHDAP (California Housing Down Payment Assistance) – only available in CA

This program helps people buy houses with no money down by using both an FHA loan and a CHDAP second mortgage of 3%. This CHDAP financing is not free money, it must be paid when the primary mortgage is paid off, refinanced, or the home is sold.  With CHDAP and seller’s assistance combined, a homeowner can purchase a home with no money down or closing costs.

In order to qualify for this program your income must be below the average income for the area you are purchasing a home, you must be able to qualify for an FHA loan, and you can not have owned a house in the last 3 years. In addition, the house you are purchasing must not exceed FHA loan limits for your area.

Neighborhood Gold Program

This program is administered as a 501 (c) (3) non profit and allows all FHA qualified home buyers to purchase a home with no money down. Depending on the seller’s level of participation, the buyer could receive 3% – 10% to help with the down payment and closing costs. It does cost 1% of the loan amount (not to exceed $1,000) to be able to enroll in this FHA program but this fee can be paid by the seller or subtracted from the cash grant.

A nice added bonus of this plan is that you get one year in the Involuntary Unemployment Mortgage Program which will pay your mortgage up to $1500 a month for 1 year if you lose your job through no fault of your own such as with a strike, bankruptcy or layoffs.

Public Housing Loans

Sometimes, HUD may sell all or a portion of its housing inventory and makes those units available to low income families. To qualify for this program you must meet income requirements, not have owned a home in 3 years, have a job, and attend some finance counseling classes. This program offers financing for home ownership, home repairs, and utilities. 

Indian Home Loan Guarantee Program

To receive mortgage help with the program you must be a member of a federally recognized Indian tribe or of Native Alaskan descent If you qualify for this program which is called Section 184, you may be eligible to get a loan with only 2.25% down for houses priced over $50,000 or a loan with only 1.25% for loans under $50,000. This financing can be used for homes both on and off of Indian reservations and the money can be used for buying, building, or fixing an existing home.