White coastal house with red roofs, broad balconies, and a landscaped patio beside the shoreline.

First Time Home Buyers 20% in Down Payment and Closing Costs Assistance

ADVICE Josh Taylor. October 29, 2024

There's an amazing new program for first time buyers struggling to come up with the downpayment for a home. It's called The Dream For All Shared Appreciation Loan. It's a down payment assistance program for first-time homebuyers to help them with the downpayment and closing costs to buy a home. NO INTEREST the homeowner pays back the original loan amount plus 20% of any appreciation in the value of the home. This won't last long as they're limited funds for this program.

Dream For All

CalHFA just released the Dream For All Program - a shared equity program.

This program makes it easier to buy a home in California!

Goes behind a Fannie or Freddie Conventional 1st mortgage.

Owner occupied purchases.

Helps with funds to close and can be used as a strategy to help with making payments for affordable!

You can use up to 20% of the purchase price toward the down payment and closing costs.

It can be added to your own down payment to help make your monthly payment more affordable. (Max of 30% total down)

You pay no interest on that 20% shared appreciation loan.

The homeowner pays back the original loan amount plus 20% of any appreciation in the value of the home.

How you qualify:

Have to be a first time buyer- haven’t owned a home in the last 3 years.
Income below the county income limits.
Credit Score minimum 680
San Diego county- total income must be below $211,000.
You have to take a homebuyer class online - $99

Dream for all conventional first mortgage providing First Time Home Buyers (FTHBs) up to 20% down payment/closing costs.

CA properties only (Single Family Homes, Condos, Manufactured Homes)
Shared appreciation – up to 20% + pay back the loan
No monthly payments
Trusts are not permitted

Repayment

At transfer of title
Sale of property
Payoff the first loan
Refinance the first loan
The loan is NOT assumable.

REFINANCING YOUR FIRST MORTGAGE. During the life of your DFA loan, CalHFA will allow you to refinance your first mortgage loan into a single limited cash-out refinance without requiring immediate repayment of your Shared Appreciation loan one time, and one time only, so long as you also comply with CalHFA’s resubordination policy

DFA Loan is a “deferred” loan. This means that you do not have to pay it back until the end of the 30-year term of the loan, so long as: (1) you own the home, (2) there is still some amount of principal balance outstanding, and (3) you have not violated any of the terms of the Loan Documents.

PREPAYMENT OF DFA LOAN FUNDS. You have the right to prepay part or all of the Original Principal of your DFA Loan. If you prepay all of the Original Principal of your DFA Loan, the Shared Appreciation on your loan will become immediately due based on the Fair Market Value of your home at the time of prepayment which pays off the entire remaining principal balance. Your home’s Fair Market Value will be determined by a valuation conducted (appraisal). If you prepay only a part of the DFA Loan, the payment that you make will be applied only to principal. You may not prepay any CalHFA Share of Appreciation amount on your DFA loan unless you pay off the entire CalHFA Share of Appreciation amount then-outstanding.

The amount of the shared appreciation is capped at 2.5 times the original principal amount.