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6 Creative Ways to Afford a HomeIf your income and savings are making homebuying a challenge, consider these options. 1. Investigate local, state, and national downpayment assistance programs. These programs give loans or grants to cover all or part of your required downpayment. National programs include the Nehemiah program (http://www.getdownpayment.com) and the American Dream Downpayment Fund from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (http://www.hud.gov). 2. Get the seller to provide financing. In some cases, sellers may be willing to finance all or part of the purchase price of the home and let you repay them gradually, just as you do a mortgage. 3. Consider a shared-appreciation, or shared equity, arrangement. Under this arrangement, your family, friends, or even a third-party may buy a portion of the home and thus share in any appreciation when the home is sold. The owner/occupant usually pays the mortgage, property taxes, and all maintenance costs, but all investors’ names are usually on the mortgage. There are companies that can help you find such an investor if your family can’t participate. 4. Get help from your family. Perhaps a family member will loan you money for the downpayment and/or act as a cosigner for the mortgage. Lenders often like to have a cosigner if you have little credit history 5. Lease with the option to buy. Renting the home for a year or more will give you the chance to save more toward your downpayment. And in many cases, owners will apply some of the rental amount toward the purchase price. You usually have to pay a small, nonrefundable option fee to the owner. 6. See if you can qualify for a short-term second mortgage to give you the money to make a higher downpayment. This may be possible if you have a good income and little other debt. Reprinted from REALTOR® Magazine Online by permission of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® Select Realty Services 23225 Tamyram Road Sky Valley, CA 92241 Tel: 760-329-3650 Fax: 760-329-1265This Is Coachella Valley's Unique Real Estate Web SitePalm Springs Desert Area Homes, Condos & Real Estate are to be found in the Coachella Valley cities of Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Indian Wells, Bermuda Dunes, La Quinta, Desert Hot Springs, Thousand Palms, and Indio. These are the cities that form the Greater Palm Springs Desert Area and are home to some of the finest living and the best resort real estate in the world. If you want to sell or buy homes, condos, or real estate anywhere in the Coachella Valley, this site will provide the information you need and the solutions you seek.
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