The two beliefs worth clearing up first
“It is only for first-time buyers.” Some programs are. The ones we write are not — there is no first-time-buyer requirement on any of the assistance programs currently available through our channels. If you owned a home before and lost it, or sold it years ago, you are not excluded.
“I earn too much.” State and local bond programs almost always cap income, and that is where the belief comes from. The lender-side programs we have access to generally carry no maximum income restriction at all. It is worth checking rather than assuming, in either direction.
Where the credit score has to land
The floors are higher than bare FHA, and that is the real trade. FHA on its own goes to 580 for maximum financing, and 500 with 10 percent down.1 Assistance programs sit above that:
- 620, with an Approve/Eligible back from automated underwriting, is the usual entry point.
- 660 where the file has to be manually underwritten, following FHA guidelines from there.
- Some programs will take a Refer/Eligible finding; most will not.
Which means a file in the 500s can have FHA and no assistance, and a file at 625 can have both. If you are close to 620, that gap is worth a conversation before you apply, because it is often one balance.
This is the one place where waiting genuinely buys something specific and countable: crossing 620 with an automated approval opens the whole down payment problem. It is not vague advice about “building credit” — it is one number, and we can tell you how far away you are in an afternoon.
The rest of the box
- Purchase only, and a primary residence. One to two units on the programs that allow two.
- Debt-to-income follows the automated finding rather than a flat cap.
- Non-occupant co-borrowers are allowed on some programs, per FHA's own rules.
- Homebuyer counselling is required on some programs — typically one borrower completing a HUD-approved course. It is free, it is usually online, and it is not an obstacle, but it takes a few hours and it has to be done before closing rather than after.
- Loan size can run to conforming and high-balance limits, so this is not restricted to the cheapest end of the market.
Program terms differ by lender and change without notice, and not every program is available in every state we are licensed in. Every file is still subject to underwriting approval. The list above describes what our channels allow us to write today, not a commitment to lend.
Sources
These references support the factual explanations above. Where this page states a preference rather than a fact, it says so — those are our editorial judgement, not a claim that any one channel always costs less.
Next
What assistance actually costsIt is not free money, and the largest cost is the one nobody mentions.What a 500–579 score costsIt changes the down payment and it shortens the list of lenders. It does not end the conversation.Before you sign for assistance
A grant, a forgivable lien and a loan with a monthly payment are not the same thing, and the paperwork often does not say which one you have. Send us what you were quoted and we will tell you what is actually being handed to you.