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
Nothing to repay, ever: this option pays the full 3.5% FHA minimum down payment and leaves no lien behind, for buyers within the area income limit or in a qualifying category.
On the forgivable and repayable options
No income cap on the forgivable and repayable options: earn what you earn. The nothing-to-repay option is the one exception, opening at or below 140% of area median income or through 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 Florida · no option requires a first-time buyer · no option combines with another assistance program · owner-occupied primary residences only.
Nothing on this page is a Loan Estimate, an approval, a quote, or a commitment to lend. Down payment assistance eligibility, amounts, and terms depend on the first-lien program, the option, the property, the buyer’s credit and category, and full underwriting through select wholesale lenders licensed in sixteen states; the calculator’s rate is an editable benchmark and its payment an estimate. Lendmire is a mortgage broker and is never the lender, and is not affiliated with or acting on behalf of FHA, VA, USDA, HUD, or the federal government.
What down payment assistance is — and how the options differ.
For Palm Coast, FL buyers, the first-time home buyer programs work the same way: the first lien carries most of the price, the assistance covers the minimum investment, and the shape of the assistance — nothing to repay, forgivable, or repayable — decides what it costs to carry.
For the program overview, see Lendmire’s down payment assistance program, or the statewide guide at Down Payment Assistance in Florida.
Assistance covers the FHA down payment
The gap the program closes for a Palm Coast buyer is the minimum investment: the assistance covers that share of the price, the first lien carries the rest, and the buyer’s own savings stay for the move.
Four shapes: grant, forgivable, repayable, refinance
Nothing to repay, forgiven over time, or repaid with a balloon: the three purchase shapes in Palm Coast, FL 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 Palm Coast 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.
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 Palm Coast’s first-time and moderate-income buyers shop — and how the assistance fits.
These Palm Coast, FL figures describe the market, not a borrower; the first lien’s approval and the option’s rules carry the file, and the numbers here only explain the neighborhood it sits in.
Read the figures as backdrop. 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 Palm Coast submarkets, distinct property rules.
The metropolitan market around Palm Coast splits into distinct pockets; a lender underwrites the home in front of it, but the pocket sets the expectations.
Older neighborhoods and renovation loans
Renovation purchases in Palm Coast qualify for the assistance on the price before repairs, which lets a buyer take on a home that needs work without also finding the minimum investment. Median household income in Palm Coast sits near $77,350 on the latest Census estimate.
Two-to-four-unit homes, owner-occupied
The small multi-unit stock in Palm Coast 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 Palm Coast runs near $350,800 on the latest Census estimate.
New construction and infill
A newly built Palm Coast 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 Palm Coast is about $1,782 a month — the payment many renters already carry.
Condominiums close to work
Buyers in Palm Coast’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. About 18% of Palm Coast’s households rent — roughly 7,221 renter households, the pool the program exists for.
Manufactured homes on owned land
In Palm Coast, a manufactured home on a fee-simple lot pairs with the program; leaseholds do not, and the home’s width decides which option carries it. On a home at Palm Coast’s median value, the FHA minimum investment comes to about $12,300 — the figure the assistance is built to cover.
Townhomes and attached homes
In Palm Coast, 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. Palm Coast counts a population near 98K.
These are patterns, not promises: each Palm Coast purchase is underwritten on its own appraisal, its own credit, and its own option.
Four ways Palm Coast buyers put down payment assistance to work.
How Palm Coast buyers put the program to work depends on the first lien, the property, and what the help needs to cover; these four paths cover most files.
Buy a first home with the down payment covered
For a first purchase in Palm Coast, the assistance closes the down payment gap; the option is chosen by credit, first lien, and eligibility category.
Buy a home that needs work with a renovation mortgage
A Palm Coast 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.
Pair the assistance with a USDA or HUD-184 mortgage
A Palm Coast, FL buyer on a USDA or HUD-184 first lien uses the second-lien options, forgivable or repayable; the nothing-to-repay option pairs only with FHA first liens.
Cover closing costs too on the larger option
A Palm Coast 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.
Size the assistance on a Palm Coast price before requesting a quote.
Run a Palm Coast 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.
Palm Coast FHA payment with assistance
Seeded with Palm Coast’s 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 $350,000 price near Palm Coast’s median owner-occupied home value (kept where an FHA first lien is realistic), the strongest assistance option offered in Florida applied against the FHA minimum investment, a thirty-year term at the current Freddie Mac benchmark, property taxes and insurance estimated for Florida (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 Palm Coast, FL 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.
The buyer brings the minimum investment from savings, a retirement withdrawal, or seasoned funds; no second lien, no eligibility category, no homebuyer education requirement, and no assistance to carry. For the first lien itself, see Lendmire’s FHA loan program.
On a USDA or HUD-184 first lien, the assistance shifts to the second-lien options and to the closing costs; the nothing-to-repay option pairs only with FHA. For the USDA first lien, see the USDA loan program.
If the payment fits but the cash to close does not, down payment assistance is the structure; if the cash is there, the plain purchase; if the property is USDA-eligible, the USDA first lien with assistance for costs.
What to prepare for a Palm Coast 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.
The assistance is the easy part; the rules around it are where Palm Coast, FL files stall. These are the ones that most often change a file’s shape.
Use these checks to keep the Palm Coast file clean and fundable.
Before making an offer on a Palm Coast, FL 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: identify the category that opens the nothing-to-repay option.
- Confirm the property: check condominium approval and manufactured-home width.
The option decides what you owe afterward
The same minimum investment can be covered three ways in Palm Coast, FL, 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.
Property type and unit count select the option
The property itself can move a Palm Coast, FL 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.
No stacking with other assistance
No option may be combined with another down payment assistance program, and the nothing-to-repay option does not combine with a high-balance first lien; one assistance option, one first lien, one closing.
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.
From a Palm Coast pre-approval to keys with the assistance in place.
The path from a Palm Coast pre-approval to keys with the assistance in place runs through the option first and the paperwork second.
Pick the option
Every Palm Coast file starts with the option and the first lien; the category, the education course, and the property rules are then settled around them, in that order.
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
The appraisal, the condominium approval where one applies, the manufactured-home title, and the county loan limit are settled; small repairs go into an escrow holdback where the option allows it.
Close both loans together
Final underwriting reads the whole Palm Coast, FL 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.
Lendmire built its consumer practice around the buyers these programs exist for, which is why the options, the categories, and the property rules are familiar ground rather than surprises.
The option, matched to the buyer
A Palm Coast 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 Palm Coast 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
A Palm Coast 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.
Palm Coast down payment assistance FAQs
The questions a Palm Coast, FL buyer asks before requesting an assistance review, answered plainly.
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?
A Palm Coast buyer above the area income limit still reaches the nothing-to-repay option through an occupation, a first purchase, or the tract, and reaches the second-lien options regardless of income.
What first-time home buyer programs are available in Palm Coast?
A Palm Coast buyer can cover the FHA minimum investment through a nothing-to-repay option where offered, a forgivable second lien, or a repayable second lien that reaches closing costs; the calculator on this page sizes each one on a price you enter.
Do I have to pay the assistance back?
For a Palm Coast 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 Palm Coast buyer’s credit tier decides which options are open — the options table on this page shows the floor for every option offered in Florida.
What if my mortgage is above the county loan limit?
A high-balance first lien narrows the choice to the repayable options in Palm Coast, FL.
What is the rate on the mortgage and on the assistance?
It depends on the first lien, the option, and the file; the rate shown in the calculator is an editable market benchmark, not a quote, and the payment it produces is an illustrative estimate. A scenario review produces the terms.
Can I buy a duplex or a fourplex with assistance?
Owner-occupied small multi-unit homes qualify, with the unit count deciding the option; a Palm Coast buyer living in one unit of a fourplex uses the option that reaches four.
What is the repayable option and when does it make sense?
The repayable second lien covers the minimum investment and closing costs; plan around its balloon and read its disclosures as the loan it is.
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.
Place your Palm Coast purchase on the right option today.
No credit pull, no commitment: an initial review places your Palm Coast purchase on the right option and tells you what to gather.
This guide covers Palm Coast — for the statewide options, categories, and property rules, see Down Payment Assistance in Florida, part of Lendmire’s down payment assistance program.
Also in Florida: Delray Beach · Lakeland · North Port · Margate · FHA Loans · USDA Loans