Community bankers can learn more about grant and mortgage loan programs offered nationwide with the help of The Affordable Mortgage Lending Guide, Part II: State Housing Finance Agencies, recently published by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
This publication is focused on first-lien mortgage products, downpayment and closing assistance, mortgage tax credit certificates, and homeownership education and counseling programs that can facilitate mortgage lending by insured depository institutions. It includes individual summaries of each state housing finance agency, complete with a listing of programs offered and web links for easy reference by bankers operating in that state or territory.
The Affordable Mortgage Lending Guide is broken down into three parts. The following is a summary of the products and services covered in Part II:
- First-Lien Mortgage Products: HFA conventional portfolio loans, government loans, Fannie Mae’s HFA Preferred (Low MI), Fannie Mae’s HFA Preferred Risk-Sharing (No MI) and Freddie Mac’s HFA Advantage.
- Downpayment and Closing Assistance: Includes DPA “Soft Second” Mortgages and Downpayment Assistance Grants.
- Mortgage Tax Credit Certificates (MCC): Certificates that can help lenders increase their appeal to first-time homebuyers and help more borrowers qualify for homes by reducing their mortgage payments.
- Homeownership Education and Counseling: Pre-Purchase Homebuyer Education, Foreclosure Prevention Counseling and online course options.
The first edition covered programs offered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Federal Housing Administration, Department of Agriculture, Department of Veterans Affairs, Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The third edition will cover federal home loan banks and is expected to be available later in 2016.
These publications are intended as resources that bankers can use to gain an overview of a variety of program resources, compare different products, obtain information on Community Reinvestment Act implications and identify the next steps for program participation.
All guide publications can be found at the Affordable Mortgage Lending Center, an online resource center featuring data, fact sheets, and mortgage lending studies from the FDIC and other federal resources. The center also provides links that take the reader directly to the housing programs discussed in the guide.