Buying a home has for so long been a key ingredient in the American Dream. However, a lack of supply and skyrocketing prices put homeownership out of reach for so many hardworking individuals and families. One way to remedy this is down payment assistance (DPA) – money made available for prospective home buyers from programs designed to help foster successful homeownership.
But is downpayment assistance available for those interested in buying a manufactured home? We at Next Step have sought to answer that question with our new Down Payment Seeker™ tool.
Powered by our partners at Down Payment Resource®, Next Step’s Down Payment Seeker is a Web-based tool – hosted on our website – that identifies programs across the country that allow for down payment assistance to be used when purchasing a manufactured home. A simple user interface allows prospective home buyers to enter in some basic information about their situation, then Down Payment Resource’s algorithm seeks out DPA programs that will support their manufactured home purchase.
Even though the oft-held belief that buyers need 20 percent of the home sale price on hand for a down payment is being challenged, the cost of a down payment is still daunting for most Americans. In 2018, the median down payment amount in the U.S. in 2018 was $15,490 (or 5.37 percent of the median price home price of $270,000). Considering that the federal minimum wage remains at $7.25/hour – and the median household income in 2018 was $63,179 – having enough on hand for a down payment is still a significant challenge for many families.
Our hope is that combining the built-in affordability of manufactured homes and the prospect of DPA for that home purchase will allow for more individuals and families to successfully purchase a home of their own. Check out Next Step’s Down Payment Seeker tool here.