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North Carolina NC 1st Home Advantage Down Payment

North Carolina Housing Finance Agency offers the NC 1st Home Advantage Down Payment to first-time buyers in North Carolina: up to $15,000, as a forgivable loan.

Amount
As much as $15,000
What kind of help
A loan that can be forgiven
Open only to first-time buyers
Yes, though exceptions apply
Your credit score
At least 640

You get a forgivable loan at 0%, with no payments required. Each year from year 11 through year 15, 20% of the loan is forgiven, so you owe nothing once year 15 has passed.

Keep the home and the first mortgage on it for the years the program sets, and the forgivable loan gets written off.

North Carolina NC 1st Home Advantage Down Payment: who qualifies?

  • What you earn and the home's sales price both must fall within program limits.
  • Only first-time buyers: yes, though exceptions exist.
  • Your credit score must be at least 640.
  • You get it together with an NC Home Advantage Mortgage (FHA, USDA, VA or conventional).
  • The home's price must stay within the sales price limits the program sets.

Your county and household size determine most limits. Use our HUD income limits checker to see the median income for your area and how your household compares.

North Carolina NC 1st Home Advantage Down Payment: how to apply

  1. This help comes from North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, paid out through its approved lenders. Apply through one of them when you take out your home loan.
  2. After checking the home, your income and your credit against the program's rules, the lender reserves the money on your behalf.
  3. At closing, the help is paid toward the down payment and the closing costs on your home.

The full rules, plus whether applications are being taken, are on North Carolina Housing Finance Agency's page for the NC 1st Home Advantage Down Payment. Or pick one of the agency's participating lenders.

North Carolina NC 1st Home Advantage Down Payment: ask a lender

Tell us where you're buying and a lender that works with North Carolina's programs can tell you whether North Carolina NC 1st Home Advantage Down Payment fits you, and what you could combine with it.

Call 866-602-7460

Don't want to call? Share your details and the lender will get in touch.

When you send this request, you agree that one mortgage lender who works with these programs may contact you by email, phone or text, including by automated means, about this request. Agreeing is not a condition of any purchase. We are an independent guide, not a lender or a government agency; only that one lender gets your details, and it may pay us for the introduction. See our about page and privacy notice.

First-time buyer programs in North Carolina: other options

All North Carolina programs for first-time home buyers · Down payment help in every state