Down payment assistance

[CostantinoA]

Hello everyone:

My wife works for the union and wants to use a downpayment assistance program on our house purchase.  I have talked to 3 different lenders and 1 was all for it, 1 was not sure and 1 hated the idea.  I wanted to see what everyone else though.

Here are the details of the program.

Established as a result of the 2007 collective bargaining agreement, the Nevada Partners & Culinary and Bartenders Housing Partnership has placed over 1,050 union families into homeownership since it was created in 2008 and provided approximately $4,000,000 in down payment assistance and closing costs. The Culinary and Bartenders Housing Partnership funded 121 loans in 2015, totaling over $1.3 million.

If you are a worker covered by the Culinary and Bartenders’ union contract who has at least 2,000 hours of service over a three-year period, then you are eligible for the housing benefit that helps workers obtain the dream of homeownership.

The Culinary and Bartenders Housing Partnership provides the following benefits:

* Homebuyer education and pre-purchase counseling in English and Spanish
* Post-purchase workshops (in English & Spanish), including foreclosure prevention
* First-time homebuyer down payment assistance loans

The Culinary and Bartenders Housing Partnership provides up to $20,000 in assistance to purchase your first home!

Key elements of the program include:

• The down payment assistance loan up to $20,000 has a 0% interest rate.
• You do not have to pay back the loan unless you sell, rent, or refinance the property.
• If you sell, rent, or refinance you pay the loan back at face value with no interest charges.
• You must live in the house you buy (no second homes or vacation homes).
• You must not have owned a home within the past three years.
• You must contribute 3.5% down payment for an FHA mortgage. 
• You must contribute 1% of the purchase price for a conventional mortgage.
• Your combined household income can't be greater than $83,750 for a 1-2 person household. For a household with 3 or more persons, your combined household income can't be greater than $105,350.
• You will be required to complete an orientation class, an 8 hour homebuyer education course and a one-on-one counseling session at no cost to you.
• You must qualify for a mortgage - you may use a lender of your choice, or the Housing Program can provide you with a list of participating lenders to assist you. Participating lender list can be located at www.nevadapartners.org.
• Funds for loans are limited and will be granted on a first come first serve basis.

Foreclosure Prevention Assistance:

Please contact the Housing Programs department, if you own your own home and you are:

1. Currently behind in your mortgage payments.
2. Received a notice of loan default or breach in the mail.
3. Received a notice of foreclosure sale of your home.

[irunfromcredit]

Doesn't look so bad. Although if I'm reading it right, you would have to pay it back if you sell, rent, refinance...in guessing this would be for the life of the loan? If that's the case...then does not seem as appealing.