I got a call on the show today from someone who earns $28,000 per year and wants to buy a house. He’ll only qualify for about a $90,000 mortgage, and wanted to know if there were any other resources. After the show, I got this email that I wanted to share with you:

“I was listening to your show today and heard a man call in looking to buy a house but had a very low income. I wanted to suggest that you look at the Georgia Dream Homeownership Program. It helps to pay for closing costs and down payments. The income limit is $68,000 for the atlanta area- $58,000 for the rest of GA. They also provide lower interest fixed mortgage loans.It was very difficult to find it online (my sister used a similar program to buy a home in texas this year)- go to www.dca.state.ga.us the look for “Georgia Dream” under “programs”. It might be worth mentioning on your show sometime.”

This is Ilyce again: Many areas have non-profit housing agencies that can help with below-market interest rates and finding houses that are less expensive. Check out your area’s housing agency for details.

Please post links to other places first-time buyers can go to assistance.

Published: Jul 9, 2006