Unfortunately not, there is no specific Santa Rosa or Sonoma County first Time home buyer program available anymore. Down payment assistance options come in the form of pulling money out of retirement accounts such as stocks, bonds, IRA and 401(k) options. Another fantastic source for a down payment is gift funds. Many potential homebuyers are also unaware that a security deposit is also eligible money for use for closing costs or or a down payment.

These programs allow for a first-time home buyers to successfully purchase a home:

FHA Loan: allows for a buyer to purchase a home with as little as 3.5% down. Previous short sale, foreclosure or even a previous bankruptcy or even a combination of multiple previous credit challenges is still okay with this financing type. While the credit requirements for this type of financing are incredibly flexible, this is also one of the more pricey types of mortgages available on the market today with mortgage insurance being just over 1% of the loan amount on a monthly basis. Still, this one could be a great bridge loan into purchasing a home and subsequently refinancing in the future into a loan with no or little private monthly mortgage insurance.

Conventional Loan: Can be used to purchase a property with as little as 5% down. 5% down on this type of financing would require a monthly mortgage insurance payment however, approximately half of what the mortgage insurance would be compared to an FHA Mortgage. Alternatively, if a buyer can come up with a 10% down payment, they would be eligible to purchase a home with lender paid mortgage insurance where the mortgage lender actually pays the PMI associated with the mortgage providing a substantially lower monthly payment for an extra 5% skin in the game.

Are you thinking about buying a home in Sonoma County or Santa Rosa, California? If yes, start today by getting a complementary mortgage rate quote.