This is only a brief overview of the Welcome Home Program. Complete details, limits, requirements, definitions, and guidelines are contained in Attachment H of the 2017 AHP Implementation Plan and in the 2017 Welcome Home Guide.

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What is the Welcome Home Program?

The Welcome Home Program (WHP) offers grants to fund reasonable down payments and closing costs incurred in conjunction with the acquisition or construction of owner-occupied housing by low- and moderate-income homebuyers. The grants are limited to $5,000 per homebuyer and Members are subject to an aggregate limit of $200,000 per offering. All funds are reserved for specific homebuyers purchasing specific homes and cannot be transferred to other homebuyers or to other homes. Welcome Home funds will be available for reservation on a first-come, first-served basis beginning at 8:00 AM ET on March 1, 2017, and will remain available until all funds have been reserved

Who Can Use the WHP?

The FHLB has established a set-aside of Affordable Housing Program (AHP) funds to help create homeownership. These funds are available to Members as grants to assist their mortgage loan applicants in the home buying process. This is our most widely used program, ideally suited to the needs of community lenders and their customers.

What are the Program Requirements?

Below is an abbreviated list of program eligibility requirements:

• The total income for all occupants must be at or below 80 percent of the Mortgage Revenue Bond (MRB) limit for the county and state where the property is located. The FHLB has an Income and Affordability Workbook to assist in determining household income eligibility.
• Homebuyers must contribute at least $500 of their own funds towards down payment and/or closing costs.
• WHP applicants do not have to be first-time homebuyers. However, all first-time homebuyers are required to complete a homeownership counseling program.
• WHP grant funds are intended only for homebuyers who qualify for the first mortgage based on their own merit. Co-signors and co-borrowers are not allowed unless they will occupy the home as their primary residence and their incomes are included in determining eligibility.
• WHP grant funds may be used in conjunction with other local, state and federal funding sources and with the FHLB Cincinnati’s Community Investment Cash Advance Programs.
• The Member who reserves the WHP funds must originate the first loan, but the loan may close in the name of a third party.
• The interest rate for the first mortgage may not exceed 7.25 percent.
• The interest rate for the second mortgage may not exceed 10.75 percent.
• Only second mortgages provided by formal organizations, community development financial institutions, housing finance agencies, non-profit organizations, etc. are acceptable.

All eligible property assisted with WHP funds is subject to a five-year retention mechanism (Retention Agreement), which may require the household to repay all, or a portion, of the subsidy, if the home is sold or refinanced within five years from the closing of the transaction.

Call the Lakeshore REALTORS office to see how you can benefit from this program – 419-586-6427.

 

(From FHLB Cincinnati | https://www.fhlbcin.com/community-investment/welcome-home-program/)