'Unprecedented' demand: $300 million set aside for home loan assistance program gone in 11 days
Only days after California launched a first-of-its-kind home loan assistance program, the $300 million allocated for it in the 2022-2023 budget was entirely reserved for applicants currently under contract to buy their first homes.
An estimated 2,500 Californians will receive Dream for All Shared Appreciation Loans through the California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA).
“The demand was unprecedented,” said CalHFA spokesperson Eric Johnson. “We went through the entire allocation of 300 million dollars in about 11 days.”
Johnson told KCRA 3 that no other government has tried to do something like this at this scale.
How the program works:
- Dream for All helps home buyers with a 20% down payment.
- When they pay back that loan, either through selling or refinancing their home, they have to pay back the original loan.
- Recipients must also pay 20% of the increase in the home's value.
“If they buy a house for $500,000, and then five years down the road sell it for $600,000 the home has appreciated in value by $100,000,” Johnson explained. “They have to pay us, in addition to the original loan... twenty percent.”
For some first-time home buyers, however, getting financing is only the first challenge.
“I think the program came at a tough moment where we're struggling, not only with affordability… but we're really struggling with not enough listings,” said Ryan Lundquist, home appraiser and housing analyst for the greater Sacramento area.
A lack of inventory could make things even more frustrating for home buyers in this already-competitive local housing market — for those not benefiting from a program like Dream for All.
“To bring in extra stimulus in a market that already is tight, where supply and demand feel like they're really competitive, it's tough,” Lundquist said.
The program's popularity, Lundquist said, speaks to the tremendous desire for home ownership.
“It shows that buyers and prospective buyers are hungry in today's market,” he said.
So what about the people who missed out on this opportunity?
The state encourages people to explore the other homebuyer assistance programs posted on its website.
“We also have other programs for the people who weren't able to take advantage of this one,” said Johnson.
Analysts recommend working with a lender well-versed in financing options that'll fit your budget needs.
“There might be something else out there that can – maybe not match [Dream for All] – but maybe it can come close,” Lundquist said. “The only way to know is, I think, to explore those options.”
In order to qualify for the Dream for All program, homebuyers needed to complete a loan education course.
The state also said that each year, it will send recipients "reminders" about the special terms of their loans.