Current down payment assistance guidelines, updated from one source.
One source feeds every down payment assistance page Lendmire publishes; the Temple, TX figures below refresh when the program sheets are updated.
Of the purchase price
Up to this share of the price can come from assistance: the largest option reaches closing costs as well as the down payment, while the smaller options cover the 3.5% FHA minimum.
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
Most of the options carry no income limit, so a higher-earning household qualifies the same as anyone else; only the nothing-to-repay option looks at income, at 140% of the area median, or at 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.
The figures on this page are program parameters, not offers: assistance percentages, credit floors, unit limits, and forgiveness periods vary by option and by state, and every file is underwritten individually. The calculator estimates an FHA payment at an editable benchmark rate that is not a quote; no fee or lender is stated or implied. Lendmire brokers these loans through its wholesale network in sixteen licensed states, 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 Temple, 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
Every option is sized on the price, not on a fixed sum: the smaller options cover the minimum investment, the larger repayable option covers it and reaches closing costs and prepaid items too.
Four shapes: grant, forgivable, repayable, refinance
The assistance comes as a grant where it is offered, as a forgivable second lien, or as a repayable second lien; each pairs with the first lien differently, and the options table on this page shows what is offered in Texas.
Credit floors, mortgage programs, and unit counts
Credit decides which options are open; the first lien decides which options attach; the property’s unit count and type decide which option carries it. The options table shows all three side by side.
Eligibility without a first-time-buyer rule
Eligibility is broader than most buyers expect: repeat buyers qualify, income limits apply only to the nothing-to-repay option, and the categories that open it include first responders, educators, medical personnel, civil servants, and military.
The assistance is measured on the price, so the calculator starts there. It then applies the option you choose, your own cash, and an editable benchmark rate to show the loan, the mortgage insurance, and the payment.
Where Temple’s first-time and moderate-income buyers shop — and how the assistance fits.
Where Temple, TX’s renters live, what a median home costs, and what a median household earns — Census estimates give the backdrop for a down payment assistance file.
These are context figures, not underwriting inputs. A large renter share signals demand for the program; a moderate median value signals that the minimum investment is within the assistance’s reach; the two together describe where the program closes most files.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Distinct Temple submarkets, distinct property rules.
Where a Temple 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.
Townhomes and attached homes
Attached homes and townhomes in Temple sit at price points where the minimum investment is smaller in dollars but no easier to save; the assistance closes that gap, and the association’s documents are reviewed with the file. Temple counts a population near 90K within the Killeen-Temple, TX area.
Manufactured homes on owned land
For Temple 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 Temple’s median value, the FHA minimum investment comes to about $8,400 — the figure the assistance is built to cover.
Two-to-four-unit homes, owner-occupied
In Temple, owner-occupied small multi-unit buildings qualify for assistance when the buyer lives in one of the units; the unit count decides which option applies. About 48% of Temple’s households rent — roughly 16,458 renter households, the pool the program exists for.
Older neighborhoods and renovation loans
The older streets of Temple 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 Temple sits near $68,204 on the latest Census estimate.
Condominiums close to work
Buyers in Temple’s condominium buildings use the program to bridge the down payment, with the building’s approval status settled early so the closing is not held up. The median owner-occupied home value in Temple runs near $239,000 on the latest Census estimate.
New construction and infill
A newly built Temple 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. Median gross rent in Temple is about $1,231 a month — the payment many renters already carry.
These are patterns, not promises: each Temple purchase is underwritten on its own appraisal, its own credit, and its own option.
Four ways Temple buyers put down payment assistance to work.
From a first home to a small multi-unit building to an FHA refinance, down payment assistance in Temple, TX solves a specific set of problems.
Buy a first home with the down payment covered
For a first purchase in Temple, the assistance closes the down payment gap; the option is chosen by credit, first lien, and eligibility category.
Cover closing costs too on the larger option
A Temple buyer who needs more than the minimum investment uses the repayable option that covers down payment, closing costs, and prepaid items, including costs paid outside closing.
Buy a home that needs work with a renovation mortgage
For an older Temple home, the renovation first lien and the assistance fit together, with the assistance measured on the price rather than the repaired value.
Cover the costs of an FHA refinance
The refinance-cost option in Temple, TX is for an existing FHA loan, not a streamline, and not a loan that already carries assistance; it is sized on the lesser of balance or value.
Size the assistance on a Temple price before requesting a quote.
The calculator does what a loan officer’s first pass does for a Temple file — sizes the minimum investment, applies the option, builds the FHA loan with mortgage insurance, and estimates the payment — using the current program figures and an editable benchmark rate.
Temple FHA payment with assistance
Starting assumptions reflect Temple’s home values; change any field and the loan, the mortgage insurance, and the payment are recalculated.
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 $240,000 price near Temple’s 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 Temple, 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.
USDA and HUD-184 first liens pair with the forgivable and repayable options, which then cover closing costs and prepaids rather than a down payment the first lien does not require. 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 Temple, TX file where it reads best.
What to prepare for a Temple scenario review.
A typical starting file for a first purchase with assistance.
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.
Beyond the credit tier and the first lien, a handful of details decide which option a Temple buyer can use — or whether the assistance attaches at all.
Use these checks to keep the Temple file clean and fundable.
Before making an offer on a Temple, TX home, confirm the option, the county loan limit, and the property’s unit count and type.
- Know the option: read the second lien as the loan it is.
- Confirm the category: complete the homebuyer education course where required.
- Understand the clock: expect no resubordination and no additional liens.
The option decides what you owe afterward
The same minimum investment can be covered three ways in Temple, TX, and the difference is entirely in what happens after closing: nothing, nothing if the first lien stays current, or a second loan that comes due; the options table shows what 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.
The forgiveness clock on the forgivable options
A forgivable second lien is released after the on-time payment period on the first lien — three years on one option, five on the other — with no interest and no payment in between; a serious delinquency inside the period keeps the lien in place.
The mortgage and the county loan limit
A Temple buyer near the county loan limit should settle the first lien’s size first; a high-balance first lien narrows the options to the repayable ones, and the choice of USDA or HUD-184 narrows them further.
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.
From a Temple pre-approval to keys with the assistance in place.
Four steps take a Temple, TX assistance file from a first read to funding; the first one is the one most buyers skip.
Pick the option
Lendmire reads the Temple scenario against the options offered in Texas: the credit tier, the first lien, the unit count, the category, and whether the help must reach closing costs.
Get the mortgage approved
The first lien’s approval carries the file; the assistance is arranged alongside it, with the eligibility category and the education certificate in hand where they apply.
Clear the property
Property review runs in parallel with the first lien; the Temple 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
Final underwriting reads the whole Temple, TX file against the first lien’s rules and the option’s; the loan funds with the assistance in place and the second lien, where there is one, recorded behind it.
A brokerage that pairs the assistance to the loan.
An assistance file rewards preparation, and preparation is what a brokerage built for first-time and moderate-income buyers provides.
The option, matched to the buyer
A Temple scenario is placed on the right option first — the credit tier, the first lien, and the category — and the rest of the file is then built to fit it, before anything is ordered.
The mortgage, matched to the property
A Temple file is matched to the first-lien program that carries the property — FHA everywhere, USDA or HUD-184 where they fit — and the assistance option follows that choice.
The right wholesale program
Assistance programs differ across wholesale lenders in what they offer and where; Lendmire places a Temple, TX file where its credit, its first lien, and its property read best, subject to lender program eligibility.
Trusted by first-time buyers & families alike.
Temple down payment assistance FAQs
Plain answers to the questions Temple buyers ask most about down payment assistance, before you request a review. Every file is underwritten individually; nothing here is a commitment.
Do I have to be a first-time homebuyer?
No. None of the options requires a first-time buyer. Being a first-time buyer is one of four categories that opens the nothing-to-repay option; the second-lien options have no first-time-buyer rule and no income limit at all.
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 Temple?
Four shapes paired with a government first lien: a nothing-to-repay option released at closing; forgivable second liens with no interest and no payment, released after an on-time payment period; a repayable second lien with a balloon that also reaches closing costs and prepaids; and a refinance-cost option for an existing FHA loan. The options table on this page shows what is offered in Texas.
Do I have to pay the assistance back?
Two of the shapes: the nothing-to-repay option where it is offered, and the forgivable second liens, which are released after the on-time payment period. The repayable option is a loan.
What credit score do I need?
A Temple 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?
The refinance-cost option covers the costs of an FHA refinance with a repayable second lien, at its own credit floor and combined-leverage limit.
Which mortgages can the assistance be used with?
The nothing-to-repay option pairs only with FHA; the second-lien options pair with FHA, USDA, and HUD-184. The property and the buyer decide which first lien fits.
What is the rate on the mortgage and on the assistance?
A scenario review produces the actual terms; the calculator here shows an estimate at a benchmark rate you can change, with the assistance sized on the price you enter.
Can I combine this with another assistance program?
The options do not stack with each other or with local, state, or employer programs; a Temple buyer eligible for more than one chooses the one that fits best.
What property types are eligible?
Most primary-residence property types, with the condominium’s approval, the manufactured home’s width and title, and the unit count deciding which option attaches.
Bring the price. We will find the option.
A first read of a Temple assistance scenario takes a few minutes and commits you to nothing; the option, the category, and the property rules are explained before anything is ordered.
This guide covers Temple — 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: Brownsville · Pharr · Flower Mound · Sugar Land · FHA Loans · USDA Loans