VA Loans
All military personnel are eligible for VA loans through the Department of Veterans Affairs. These loans are often made without any downpayment and frequently carry lower-than-average interest rates. The VA used to limit the number of loans it made for vets, but that is no longer true. If you already bought a home through the VA and are house-hunting again, you can benefit from this program again.
The loans are available to active and retired members of the military service, veterans, POW's and MIA's and their unmarried widows. All branches of the service including the Coast Guard are eligible. Also members of Selected Reserves or National Guard who have completed six years may be eligible along with many with WW II service from the merchant marines, military academies and others pulled into service.
The VA loans come with a few requirements: an eligible person may use this benefit on only one house at a time, and the house must be used as a primary residence. It may not be a rental home or second/vacation home. There is no maximum home loan amount. At Ease! VA Housing Benefits for Non-Military
There is one benefit of the VA that does not require you to show up in uniform. If the VA forecloses on a property, you do not have to be a veteran to purchase a the home. Some purchases require nothing down, or a fee of $500. Although the homes are sold from the VA, purchasers must obtain conventional or FHA loans unless they are veterans or active military. VA foreclosures with nothing down or $500 fees can be found among those from banks, lending institutions and federal agencies.
Half-price Homes for Teachers and Police OfficersDo you spend your days in a classroom, or your nights keeping your fellow-citizens safe from crime? If so, HUD has a program that is designed just for you. Under its Teacher Next Door and Officer Next Door programs, teachers and police officers in some communities can buy HUD-owned homes for half of the list price. And, the down payment for these homes is often very small.
Take the T to Your New HomeDo you ride the subway to work? If you live in or around Boston and can prove you use public transportation, you may qualify for the "Take the 'T' Home Mortgage Program," which allows you to borrow 100 percent of the price of a home without paying PMI. There is an income cap to qualify: 135 percent of the area's median income, or $109,000 in Boston.
California, Here I Come!The state of California operates the California Housing Finance Authority, or "CHAFA." If you are a first-time homebuyer in the golden state, CHAFA may provide up to 100% of home loan financing. A CHAFA loan usually consists of a standard 97% FHA - CHFA fixed-rate 30-year mortgage and a 3% CHFA down payment assistance second mortgage, which is also called a "sleeping" or "silent" second.
In this case, the second mortgage is offered for 30 years at 3% simple interest. All payments are deferred on this second mortgage until one of the following happens: the CHAFA first mortgage becomes due and payable; the first mortgage is paid in full or refinanced; or, the property is sold.
|
