This is big news for any qualified buyer who can buy a home, but just don’t have the downpayment. It’s called the Smartbuy DPA Program offered by Trustmark Mortgage. I spoke with Cheryl Birch, a Mortgage Originator with Trustmark, and got the following information: ( More information with be forthcoming, as this is a brand new program)
One of the options is a five year forgivable loan for your 3.5% downpayment. Forgivable means that, if you keep the loan for 5 years, you don’t have to pay it back. It’s essentially free money. If you have a purchase price of $350,000, Trustmark will give you your 3.5% downpayment or $12,250.00. This means that you would have a forgivable second lien of $12,250.00 and a primary loan amount of $337,750.00. This primary loan can be FHA or USDA.
Now here’s the other big news: There are no income limitations for the Smartbuy! Previously, people could not qualify for down payment assistance, as they made too much money. I, myself have had several potential buyers that fit into this category. Now, they can get out of their rental situations where they are throwing large amounts of money away. They can now build equity for themselves