AFFORDING A HOME

Six Creative Ways to Afford A Home

If your income and savings are making home buying a challenge, consider these options.

1. Investigate local, state, and national down payment assistance programs. These programs give loans or grants to cover all or part of your required down payment. National programs include a variety of programs (DownPaymentResource) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (https://www.hud.gov/states/minnesota/homeownership) has some helpful programs as well.

2. Get the seller to provide financing. In some cases, sellers may be willing to finance all or part of the purchase price of the home and let you repay them gradually, just as you do a mortgage.

3. Consider a shared-appreciation, or shared equity, arrangement. Under this arrangement, your family or friends or even a third-party may buy a portion of the home and thus share in any appreciation when the home is sold. The owner/occupant usually pays the mortgage, property taxes, and all maintenance costs, but all investors’ names are usually on the mortgage. There are companies that can help you find such an investor if your family can’t participate.

4. Get help from your family. Perhaps a family member will loan you money for the down payment and/or act as a cosigner for the mortgage. Lenders often like to have a cosigner if you have little credit history

5. Lease with the option to buy. Renting the home for a year or more will give you the chance to save more toward your down payment. We have a program available that will help with renting the house you want to buy. Contact us to see if you are eligible!

6. See if you can qualify for a short-term second mortgage to give you the money to make a higher down payment. This may be possible if you have a good income and little other debt.