Current down payment assistance guidelines, updated from one source.
These figures are read from Lendmire’s centralized down payment assistance standards source and update automatically when the programs change. Every state and city guide in this series reads the same source.
Of the purchase price
Assistance is sized as a share of the price, never a fixed sum: the biggest option covers the down payment and reaches closing costs, the smaller ones cover the 3.5% FHA minimum down payment.
Covers the whole FHA down payment
The FHA minimum down payment is 3.5%, and this option covers all of it with nothing to pay back — no lien, no payment, no interest — for buyers at or below the area income limit or in a qualifying category.
On the forgivable and repayable options
The forgivable and repayable options have no income limit at all — one of the biggest advantages of this program. Only the nothing-to-repay option asks for income at or below 140% of the area median, or a qualifying category.
Credit score to start
The score that opens the nothing-to-repay option; the forgivable options start a step higher and the repayable options higher still. Two-borrower files may use a blended score on the second-lien options.
| Option | Assistance | What you repay | Credit · mortgage · units |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grant-style assistance — nothing to repay | 2% or 3.5% of the price | Nothing — released at closing | 620+ · FHA 203(b), FHA repair escrow, FHA Limited 203(k), FHA Standard 203(k) · 1–4 units |
| Forgivable second lien — three-year | 3.5% of the price | Nothing after 36 on-time mortgage payments | 640+ · FHA 203(b), FHA Limited 203(k), HUD-184, USDA · 1–2 units |
| Forgivable second lien — five-year | 3.5% of the price | Nothing after 60 on-time mortgage payments | 640+ · FHA 203(b), FHA Limited 203(k), HUD-184, USDA · 1–2 units |
| Repayable second lien — thirty-year amortization, ten-year balloon | 3.5% or 5% of the price | Second lien, 30-year amortization, balloon in year 10 | 660+ · FHA 203(b), FHA Limited 203(k), HUD-184, USDA · 1–2 units |
| Closing-cost repayable second lien | 3.5% or 5% of the price | Second lien, 30-year amortization, balloon in year 10 | 660+ · FHA 203(b) · 1–2 units |
| Refinance-cost second lien (repayable) | 1% to 3.5% of the balance | Second lien, repaid | 660+ · FHA 203(b) · 1–4 units |
Current down payment assistance snapshot · updated September 7, 2026 · six options offered in Texas · no option requires a first-time buyer · no option combines with another assistance program · owner-occupied primary residences only.
This page describes down payment assistance at the program level. The option for any file comes from the credit tier, the first lien, the property, and the eligibility category; the first lien’s approval, the appraisal, and full underwriting decide the actual terms, subject to lender program eligibility. Nothing here is a quote, a fee, or a commitment to lend; the calculator’s rate is a market benchmark you can edit and its payment an estimate. Lendmire is never the lender and is not affiliated with FHA, USDA, HUD, or the federal government.
What down payment assistance is — and how the options differ.
First-time home buyer programs are not one program; they are a family of down payment assistance options paired with a government-backed first lien, and the right one for a New Braunfels, TX buyer depends on credit, the first lien, the property, and whether the help needs to reach closing costs.
For the program overview, see Lendmire’s down payment assistance program, or the statewide guide at Down Payment Assistance in Texas.
Assistance covers the FHA down payment
An FHA purchase asks for a minimum investment from the buyer; the assistance covers it, measured as a percentage of the lesser of price or value, and the largest option carries a further share for closing costs and prepaids.
Four shapes: grant, forgivable, repayable, refinance
Nothing to repay, forgiven over time, or repaid with a balloon: the three purchase shapes in New Braunfels, TX cover the same minimum investment and differ in what the buyer owes afterward.
Credit floors, mortgage programs, and unit counts
Two-borrower files can qualify on a blended score on the second-lien options when the higher earner has the higher score and an automated approval is in hand; every borrower still needs a score of their own.
Eligibility without a first-time-buyer rule
A New Braunfels buyer who has owned before is eligible; the second-lien options carry no income limit and no first-time-buyer rule, and the nothing-to-repay option opens on any one of four categories.
Enter a price, choose an option, and add your own cash. The calculator sizes the minimum investment, splits the assistance between the down payment and closing costs, and estimates the FHA payment with mortgage insurance, taxes, insurance, and dues.
Where New Braunfels’ first-time and moderate-income buyers shop — and how the assistance fits.
Market data for New Braunfels, TX frame the question every assistance file answers: at this price, how large is the minimum investment, and which option covers it?
Read the figures as backdrop. The higher the median value, the larger the minimum investment in dollars; that is why the assistance is sized as a percentage of the price rather than a fixed sum, and why the larger option matters more in expensive markets.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Distinct New Braunfels submarkets, distinct property rules.
Where a New Braunfels home sits changes which option can attach and what the property review asks; the submarkets below are the map most assistance files are read against.
New construction and infill
A newly built New Braunfels home is eligible; the buyer’s own funds requirement is covered by the assistance, and the builder’s closing date is met once the first lien is approved. About 35% of New Braunfels’ households rent — roughly 14,226 renter households, the pool the program exists for.
Condominiums close to work
Condominiums are often the entry point in New Braunfels, and the assistance follows the first lien: the building needs FHA approval, or a single-unit approval, before the down payment help can attach to it. New Braunfels counts a population near 105K within the San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX area.
Manufactured homes on owned land
For New Braunfels buyers looking at manufactured housing, the assistance is available on owned land, with single-width homes reaching only the option that accepts them. On a home at New Braunfels’ median value, the FHA minimum investment comes to about $11,900 — the figure the assistance is built to cover.
Townhomes and attached homes
In New Braunfels, a townhome in a planned development pairs cleanly with the program; the association’s rules and dues are read alongside the first lien, and the assistance covers the down payment. Median gross rent in New Braunfels is about $1,654 a month — the payment many renters already carry.
Older neighborhoods and renovation loans
The older streets of New Braunfels are full of homes that need work, and the assistance pairs with a renovation first lien: the assistance is figured on the purchase price, while the loan itself covers price plus repairs. Median household income in New Braunfels sits near $86,021 on the latest Census estimate.
Two-to-four-unit homes, owner-occupied
The small multi-unit stock in New Braunfels is a path to a first home that also earns rent; the assistance pairs with the first lien on the building, up to the option’s unit limit. The median owner-occupied home value in New Braunfels runs near $339,400 on the latest Census estimate.
Read the submarkets as orientation. The file’s figures come from the first lien, the option, and the program’s rules.
Four ways New Braunfels buyers put down payment assistance to work.
Down payment assistance in New Braunfels, TX is used for more than a first purchase; these are the structures New Braunfels buyers ask about most.
Pair the assistance with a USDA or HUD-184 mortgage
In USDA-eligible areas around New Braunfels, the forgivable and repayable options pair with a no-down-payment first lien and cover closing costs and prepaids instead; HUD-184 first liens pair with the same options.
Buy a home that needs work with a renovation mortgage
A New Braunfels buyer taking on a fixer pairs a limited or standard renovation first lien with the assistance; the help is figured on the purchase price, and the loan covers price plus repairs.
Buy a first home with the down payment covered
A New Braunfels buyer with the income for the payment but not the cash to close uses the assistance to cover the FHA minimum investment, some with nothing to repay, and keeps savings for the move.
Buy a two-to-four-unit home and live in one unit
An owner-occupied duplex, triplex, or fourplex in New Braunfels qualifies on the option that reaches four units; the buyer lives in one unit and the assistance covers the minimum investment on the whole building.
Size the assistance on a New Braunfels price before requesting a quote.
Run a New Braunfels price through the options before you request a quote: the minimum investment, the assistance applied, what is left for closing costs, the mortgage insurance tier, and the estimated payment. Enter income to see the ratios a lender reads.
New Braunfels FHA payment with assistance
Seeded with New Braunfels’ median home value; every field is editable, and the estimate updates as you change the price, the option, your cash, or the rate.
Editable benchmark: 6.71% as of September 3, 2026 · Freddie Mac 30-year average via FRED®. A conventional market reference, not an FHA loan quote.
Illustrative starting assumptions: a $340,000 price near New Braunfels’ median owner-occupied home value (kept where an FHA first lien is realistic), the strongest assistance option offered in Texas applied against the FHA minimum investment, a thirty-year term at the current Freddie Mac benchmark, property taxes and insurance estimated for Texas (U.S. Census Bureau). Every field is editable.
Illustrative estimate only — not a Loan Estimate, approval, quote, or commitment to lend. The rate field carries the weekly Freddie Mac thirty-year conventional benchmark, a market reference and not an FHA loan quote; your rate is set by the lender at lock. FHA mortgage insurance follows HUD’s published schedule for the term, leverage and loan size entered; taxes, insurance and dues are editable estimates; closing costs are not included; a repayable second lien adds its own payment, which is not shown here. Consumer mortgage lending licensed in sixteen states. Lendmire is not affiliated with or acting on behalf of FHA, USDA, HUD, or the federal government.
Same buyer, four very different closings.
The right structure for a New Braunfels, TX buyer depends on savings, credit, the first lien, and whether the help needs to reach closing costs.
Assistance on a government loan, saving the minimum, or a gift.
Covers the FHA minimum investment as a percentage of the price — some with nothing to repay — with forgivable and repayable second-lien shapes, credit floors in the low six hundreds, and no first-time-buyer rule; the larger option reaches closing costs and prepaids.
Paying the minimum investment yourself keeps the closing simplest — no second lien, no category, no course; the trade is the months or years of saving that the assistance replaces. For the first lien itself, see Lendmire’s FHA loan program.
Where the property is USDA-eligible or the buyer qualifies for HUD-184, the second-lien options carry the New Braunfels file, and the closing costs are what the assistance covers. For the USDA first lien, see the USDA loan program.
Assistance fits the buyer short of cash to close; the plain purchase fits the buyer with savings; the USDA and HUD-184 pairing fits eligible properties and borrowers; a documented gift fits when family can help — Lendmire places the New Braunfels, TX file where it reads best.
What to prepare for a New Braunfels scenario review.
The documents a lender reads first on an assistance file.
This is a general preparation guide, not a universal checklist. The selected lender may request additional information based on the mortgage, the assistance option, the property, and the eligibility category. Nothing here is legal or tax advice.
Local details that can change the loan.
These are the points a lender reads on a New Braunfels assistance file before the option is confirmed; each one can move the structure.
Use these checks to keep the New Braunfels file clean and fundable.
A clean New Braunfels file starts with the option chosen, the first lien matched to the property, and the homebuyer education course completed where it is required.
- Know the option: confirm the option is offered in the state.
- Confirm the category: complete the homebuyer education course where required.
- Confirm the property: check the unit count against the option’s limit.
The option decides what you owe afterward
Choose the shape before the amount: the forgivable options cover the minimum investment and cost nothing to carry when the first lien stays current; the repayable option covers more and is repaid; a nothing-to-repay option released at closing where it is offered.
The eligibility category for the nothing-to-repay option
The category is checked at application on the nothing-to-repay option, together with the signed assistance application and the education certificate; no option requires a first-time buyer, and the second-lien options carry no income limit.
Property type and unit count select the option
The property itself can move a New Braunfels, TX file: a fourplex, a single-width manufactured home, or an unapproved condominium project each changes which option can attach, so the address is read before the option is promised.
The balloon on the repayable option
The repayable second lien amortizes over thirty years but comes due in the tenth year; it carries interest and a monthly payment, its own loan number, and a balloon disclosure. It is the option that reaches closing costs, and it is a loan.
Homebuyer education on the nothing-to-repay option
For a New Braunfels buyer heading for the nothing-to-repay option, the course is the first thing to schedule; the certificate is part of the file, closing waits on it, and the cost is credited back at the table.
From a New Braunfels pre-approval to keys with the assistance in place.
The path from a New Braunfels pre-approval to keys with the assistance in place runs through the option first and the paperwork second.
Pick the option
The first step is the option: which ones the credit opens, which the first lien allows, and which costs the least to carry for a New Braunfels, TX buyer — settled before anything is ordered.
Get the mortgage approved
Lendmire packages the New Braunfels file for the first lien first, because the assistance follows its approval; the option’s floor and the first lien’s rules both have to clear.
Clear the property
Property review runs in parallel with the first lien; the New Braunfels home is checked against the option’s rules and the first lien’s, from the unit count to the association package.
Close both loans together
The New Braunfels closing carries both instruments: the first lien and the assistance, each documented on its own and closed together, with the education certificate in the file where it applies.
A brokerage that pairs the assistance to the loan.
Down payment assistance is where a generalist stumbles: the options differ by first lien, by credit tier, by unit count, and by state, and the wholesale programs that carry them competently are a short list.
The option, matched to the buyer
Lendmire reads the options offered in Texas against a New Braunfels buyer’s credit, first lien, property, and category before anything is ordered, and names the fit by cost to carry.
The mortgage, matched to the property
USDA where the address is eligible, HUD-184 where the buyer qualifies, FHA everywhere; the New Braunfels, TX first lien is the foundation the assistance stands on.
The right wholesale program
A New Braunfels file is matched to the wholesale program whose option fits the buyer, and Lendmire manages the first lien and the assistance together through closing.
Trusted by first-time buyers & families alike.
New Braunfels down payment assistance FAQs
The questions a New Braunfels, TX buyer asks before requesting an assistance review, answered plainly.
Do I have to be a first-time homebuyer?
Not for any option. First-time status is one path into the nothing-to-repay option, not a requirement of the program.
Is there an income limit?
Only on the nothing-to-repay option, and only when no other category applies: household income at or below the area median income limit, measured where the property sits. The forgivable and repayable second-lien options carry no income limit beyond the first lien’s own rules.
What first-time home buyer programs are available in New Braunfels?
Assistance measured as a percentage of the price, in shapes that differ by what you owe afterward: nothing, nothing if the first lien stays current, or a second loan with a balloon. Credit, the first lien, the property, and the eligibility category decide which fits.
Do I have to pay the assistance back?
For a New Braunfels buyer, the nothing-to-repay option where offered, otherwise a forgivable second lien; the options table on this page shows what each costs to carry.
What credit score do I need?
A New Braunfels buyer’s credit tier decides which options are open — the options table on this page shows the floor for every option offered in Texas.
Is there an option for refinancing?
For an existing FHA loan, yes — a repayable option sized on the balance, for a full refinance rather than a streamline.
Which mortgages can the assistance be used with?
Government first liens only: FHA for every option, USDA and HUD-184 for the second-lien options.
What if my mortgage is above the county loan limit?
Only the repayable options pair with a high-balance first lien; the nothing-to-repay and forgivable options stop at the lesser of the conforming limit or the county limit.
What is the rate on the mortgage and on the assistance?
The first lien’s rate is set by the lender at lock; the calculator on this page seeds its rate field from the weekly Freddie Mac conventional benchmark as a market reference, not an FHA quote, and every field stays editable. The repayable second lien’s terms are set by the program and disclosed on its own documents; the forgivable and nothing-to-repay options carry no interest.
What property types are eligible?
Single-family homes, FHA-approved condominiums, townhomes and planned developments, owner-occupied two-to-four-unit homes within each option’s limit, and manufactured homes on owned land — single-width on the nothing-to-repay option, double-width on the second-lien options. Unique property types are outside the second-lien options.
Ready to size the assistance on a New Braunfels home? Start with the price.
Share the property, the price, and a little about your situation; a Lendmire loan officer names the option that fits and follows up.
This guide covers New Braunfels — for the statewide options, categories, and property rules, see Down Payment Assistance in Texas, part of Lendmire’s down payment assistance program.
Also in Texas: Cedar Park · Tyler · Waco · Wylie · FHA Loans · USDA Loans