Government Grants for Single Mothers to Buy a Home-Home Purchase Grants
Grants for single mothers to buy a home exist not as grants per se. But more as financial assistance from the federal government. Some programs help you buy a home but also require that you pay the money back. Others do not. It depends on the grant program itself. In any case, if you’re looking to find a place to finally call your own. The American Dream Down Payment Initiative or ADDI could be a good option for you to think about. Let’s take a look at the details for these grants for single mothers to buy a home.
What Is The ADDI?
The American Dream Down Payment Initiative was signed by President George W. Bush in 2003. It’s purpose is to help anyone interested in buying a home with down payment assistance. See, a lot of single moms can handle mortgage payments. But the part of the home buying process that is the most difficult hurdle to get over is the down payment.
Single moms know better than anyone, when you’re constantly trying to ”Rob Peter to pay Paul” it’s not easy saving for a down payment. Not with kids to feed, putting clothes on their backs and paying the bills. So ADDI is similar to grants for single mothers to buy a home.
Home buying grants are not sent directly to you. Instead the government creates programs and then grants a certain amount of money to each state, to be used to help anyone trying to buy a home. The states take their cues from the federal government as far as specific guidelines they must follow. Then they can and do add on their own requirements.
How Does It Work?
About every 4 years, Congress decides how much money to budget for the ADDI program. The funds are then sent to each state. The amount sent to each state is based on specific ADDI formula. Like any other federal grant program the amount allocated varies. The initial amount when the program first began was $200 million dollars.
But we all know this can change from one administration to the next. But really, all grants for single mothers to buy a home will always vary. The best rule of thumb is to stay up on the latest information about this program and any others. Especially if you’re not quite ready to take the leap into home ownership right away. Just make sure you have a back up plan in the event the program ends or the assistance amount changes.
How Much Can You Get?
The most you can be given is $10,000 or 6% of the purchase price whichever is the highest amount. It must go towards your down payment and can also be used to cover closing costs.
What Are The Eligibility Requirements
You must be a first time home buyer or if you’ve owned a home prior to purchase. It has to at least three years since you purchased another property. There’s another requirement that has to do with your income. Your income can’t be more than 80% of the average incomes in your area.
How To Apply
The ADDI program is actually a part of another grant program called the HOME Investments Partnership Program. What you need to do is contact your local HOME office. You can probably just go to your state’s official website and look for the contact info there. Or just search online for American Dream Down Payment Initiative. Then give them a call and let them know you’re looking for grants for single mothers to buy a home. Find out what you need to know specifically about income requirements, what your options are in the ADDI program and how to apply.
Additional Requirements To Think About
It’s great having grants for single mothers to buy a home available. But that doesn’t mean you should run right out and sign up. You still have to make sure, buying is the best option for you financially. Sure, getting help with the down payment is great. But you need to look past the down payment.
Will you be able to afford the monthly mortgage payments? Plus insurance and taxes? Your typical house hold expenses like utilities will double whatever you’re paying now. This isn’t to discourage you from buying a home. Instead it is to make sure you’re not buying a home from an emotional point of view. Having a place you and your kids can call yours is great. But not if you’re not financially ready. You don’t want a mortgage that leaves you with barely enough left over at the end of every month. As a single mom, you’ve been there done that before!
How Do You Know If You’re Ready?
You know depending on who you talk to. Some might assume if you’re looking for grants for single mothers to buy a home. Then maybe you’re not financially fit enough to handle all that will come with owning a home. But, that’s not necessarily the case. The down payment is always tough for most.
However, if you’re having a hard time saving up for the down payment. You have to be honest with yourself. You may have to ask yourself some tough questions. Not all grants for single mothers to buy a home is a wise choice. The ADDI program was designed to help anyone meeting the income requirements to get the down payment. The fact that you have to have a lower income than average to qualify is cause for concern.
Getting one of these grants is tempting. Gee who wouldn’t be? Just make sure you’re looking at what you’ll need to deal with after you buy your home. It’s easy to get blinded by free grant money. But who’s going to help financially if you miss a mortgage payment?
Grants for single mothers to buy a home, can be a great option if you can’t afford the down payment on your own. Just be sure to sit down and do some number crunching. If the numbers don’t add up in your favor. It may be best to wait awhile longer before jumping in with both feet.
Several grants for single mothers to buy a home had been around for a number of years. But unless you were familiar with those programs it could be really confusing. With foreclosures in record numbers, you may have even thought they would have discontinued these kinds of grants. Well, you would have been correct about that. Low income families but especially single moms had several grants to consider. Why single mothers particularly? The government knows that the majority of single parents are more likely to be first time home buyers with lower incomes. There are millions of single parent households. So to help stimulate the economy, the government offered grants for single mothers to buy a home.
The U.S. government was in partnership with several non-profit organizations to create these grants. Many families wanted to buy their first home but were unable to come up with a down payment. Several non-profit organizations provided no repayment grants to help with down payments. Then with a nothing more than a swift stroke of a pen. Everything changed. Unfortunately, President Bush did away with these grants in 2008 when he signed the Housing and Recovery act of 2008. This ended the ability of non-profit organizations to provide grants for single mothers to buy a home.
Grants for Single Mothers to Buy a Home…What other Options are Available?
But it’s not all bad, you do have other options. You can apply for an FHA low down payment home loan. If applying for an FHA loan is not an option, you can check for state programs where you reside. Often there are low income grants for single mothers to buy a home. They may not be very large grants, but something is better than nothing right?
You can also look into the Habitat for Humanity. You’ve probably seen them featured on television. They are a religious Christian organization who provides homes to those in great need of a home of their own. You will have to pay a mortgage, but it will be based on what you can afford to pay. By the way, the Habitat for Humanity doesn’t care what your religion may or may not be. Will you qualify? That depends on several factors including your income. But one thing’s for sure, you’ll never know unless you contact them to find out if you can qualify.
There is a push by non-profits for the Obama administration to repeal the law and allow them to provide grants for single mothers to buy a home and help the economy. Only time will tell if that will happen or not. In the meantime, check out other possibilities that may help you and other single moms. Now is not the time to get discouraged. You must persevere for the benefit of the children and will be required to do a bit of a research. It may require a lot of time and effort on your part to find any grants for single mothers to buy a home, but if you really want your new home then roll up your sleeves and dig in!
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