@Anonymous wrote:
Hello, my wife and I are in the process of getting downpayment/closing cost assistance in FL. One of the lenders I was using had told me to dont bother unless my score is 620-640ish. We went ahead and applied since the countty i live in has limited funds. I'm right at those scores and I just had a disputed collections removed so i should be golden. Does FL SHIP funds expire after they are awarded or do I have a few months if we need to play it safe? Thanks in advance!
SHIP funds run out quickly. They run on a fiscal year rather than the calendar year. You will need to check with your county to see if there are remaining funds available. Different counties get different allotments as these are funds from doc stamps. It is not unusual for the county to completely run out of funds six months into the fiscal year and yet they continue to accept applications for approval and do not disclose that they don't have the funds to actually fund the assistance. It is so prevalent that in my area many sellers won't accept an offer that uses SHIP funding because the sale is unlikely to close. I'm in Palm Beach county. Your area may be different.
