Attention all first time buyers. If your financial situation just isn’t making the cut for homeownership, the Dream For All program in California may be your solution.
There is an exciting opportunity coming up this fall that may help you achieve your homeownership dream in San Francisco or greater California. It’s called the California Dream for All Loan Program; but it won’t last long and there are specific parameters you need to be aware of.
The California Dream for All Loan Program is a state-sponsored initiative that makes homeownership more accessible and affordable. In essence, your 20% down payment will be provided by the state and you as a homeowner will pay back the original loan amount plus 20% of any appreciation in the value of the home when you go to sell.
The state is offering this program to first time home buyers or anyone who has not owned a home in the last three years. You must be an owner-occupier. So buying as your primary residence, the residence needs to be a single family or a one-unit residence including approved condos.
Once the money runs out the program is over. This program took place in spring and the second round will be offered this fall the exact timing of the program is still unknown and CALHFA has not provided guidelines for the next round at this stage.
That said, it’s important to get ready in advance so when the information does become available you’re ready to hit the ground running. Based on the spring round, the program was a conventional loan and buyers needed a FICO score of 680 or above.
If your FICO score is a little lower than that at this time you may still want to chat with the right lender to see if your score can be raised.
As part of the program, participants are required to complete a home buyer education course. So getting this out of the way now would be an important first step. A key component of this opportunity is preparedness and speed. In the last round, the funds ran out in a matter of about two weeks.
Here’s one success story to give you a gist of what this would look like. I supported a buyer who used the program in the spring the family was able to be successful because they really had their ducks in a row.
They had completed the home buyer program and their pre-approval with a fantastic and very savvy lender in advance of the funds being available.
We went out looking for properties the weekend before the funds were set to go live my buyer identified a property he wanted to offer on that weekend that was taking offers a day or two before the funds were available. He and I were successful in getting him in the contract despite 12 other offers and he got the funds on the very first day.
“Lauren Neuschel is simply the best buyer’s agent around. Â She counseled us through a spring move from the East Bay into a single family home in San Francisco without breaking a sweat. Lauren used a data-driven approach to get my wife and me on the same page from the outset. She then listened very thoughtfully to our needs and crafted a roster of single family homes that were in our ballpark, followed by some great exercises for narrowing that search to a reasonable shortlist.
Lauren’s market intelligence and personability were immediately obvious, but I quickly learned the full extent of her work ethic. Lauren is a go-getter. It was evident that she and her team work frequently with the biggest names in the city, giving us an edge in a market that can seem large and impersonal. We also had updates and insights that likely could not be gleaned from other agents.
When it came time to placing bids, Lauren was thoughtful with her suggestions. She didn’t push us to make decisions, but her expertise was invaluable. The best kind of agent. As a result, we placed ONE bid in our entire house hunt and were under contract. One! The home had eleven other bidders, and ours was not even the highest, but Lauren worked her magic with the seller’s agent to make it happen.
Finally, Lauren was integral through the closing process and helped us through a handful of hoops with our lenders. Truly the whole package. But she didn’t stop there–she sent us pizza on our move-in night! What a delight. If you want to second-guess your Realtor®, always wondering if you had the best team in the business, then take a pass on Lauren. Otherwise it’s a non-decision.”
-D.B., Buyer
That exact process and approach is the key to your success here. So reach out if you’d like to learn more or you think you may qualify.
Let’s get this started and help you achieve your homeownership goals.
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