Guaranteed Rate Cos., a mortgage lending and digital financial services company, recently announced a new financial assistance program to help underserved homebuyers in six major U.S. cities.
Called the Special Purpose Credit Program, it provides up to $8,000 in assistance to help more people overcome accessibility challenges, such as deposit minimums and move-in repair and maintenance costs, it said.
The program provides a minimum of $5,000 in down-payment and closing-cost assistance and up to an additional 1% of the sales price or $3,000, the company said.
The program is currently available to first-time homebuyers in only six metro areas — Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Memphis, and Philadelphia — who live in specific locations determined according to U.S. Census data. Eligible homebuyers can use the assistance toward buying a house anywhere in the country, the company said.
"For many properties, a mortgage payment is not too much different than monthly rent; the difference being who benefits from home equity as it builds," said Kasey Marty, Guaranteed Rate's executive vice president of secondary marketing.
"The barrier to entry for most renters who want to buy homes is the sizable down payment and initial repair or improvement costs,” Marty continued. “This program helps tear down these barriers and open more doors to the houses, neighborhoods, and lifestyles of our customers' dreams, an investment that will help build a foundation for generations to come."
The program also includes improved pricing for nontraditional credit loans; title insurance credit for certain properties; and the removal of area median income requirements.
With the launch of this program, Guaranteed Rate said, it continues to deliver on its mission to help everyone live happier, healthier lives. The company also offers other zero and low down-payment options to help expand homeownership access, including VA, USDA, HomeOne, HomeReady, Home Possible loans, and home equity lines of credit (HELOCs).
Guaranteed Rate said it also has mortgage experts available to guide buyers through the process in the buyer's preferred language of English or Spanish.
Based in Chicago, Guaranteed Rate Companies have over 850 branches across the U.S., serving all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Since its launch in 2000, Guaranteed Rate Companies have helped more than 1 million homeowners with home purchase loans and refinances, with a total loan volume of more than $116 billion in 2021.
