Florida’s Hometown Heroes - A Down Payment Assistance Program

 In 2022, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced the creation of a new down payment assistance program geared towards helping hometown heroes purchase their first home.

The Florida General Assembly appropriated $100 million towards this new program, which is administered through the Florida Housing department.

The program offers down payment assistance in the form of a 0%, non-amortizing, 30-year deferred second mortgage. Which essentially means it is added to the back-end of a person’s mortgage. A person can receive up to 5% of the purchase price (capped at $25,000) to assist in the down payment and closing costs of the loan.

The down payment assistance can be used on a FHA, VA, USDA, and certain conventional loans, as long as the borrower is a first-time home buyer. The loan must also be a 30-year term at a fixed rate.

There are certain income limits, based on the county the borrower is purchasing in, as well as limits to how much a person can borrow under the program. For Manatee and Sarasota counties, the limits are as follows:

Income limit: $129,450

FHA & USDA: $420,680

VA and Conventional: $647,200

There are almost 50 occupations that are eligible for the program. See below for a list of the eligible occupations.