We find that most of the Florida teachers purchasing homes tend to be first time home buyers. And like most first time home buyers, down payment is often the key struggle when purchasing a home. Most first time buyers just don’t have 10 or 20% lying around for a housing down payment.
Enter the USDA Rural Housing loan, the perfect 100 Percent Home Loan For Teachers! USDA still allows for 100% financing in select, rural defined locations around Florida in 2015. This government-backed 30 year fix loan is perfect for teachers, police, firefighters or any other public service worker that has little to no savings to purchase a home.
USDA really only has two key factors to determine if you are eligible – location of the home and household income. Basically the house (single-family home) must be located in a USDA approved area according to the USDA eligibility map here. Even teachers living in more populated FL locations like Jacksonville (Duval, St. Johns, Clay) will find all the smaller communities like Orange Park, Middleburg, Green Cove, St. Augustine are currently USDA eligible. Likewise for Teachers around Orlando (Orange, Seminole, Osceola County) communities like Winter Garden, Kissimmee, etc. As well as Tampa (Hillsborough, Pasco and Manatee County) Wesley Chapel, Riverview, Ruskin, Brandon. In addition to the location of the house, the income for the entire household must be below the USDA income limits see here.
If you find you meet the two key USDA loan eligibility factors above, everything else comes down to qualifying. Pre-qualifying for a USDA loan is pretty much the same as other loan programs. Your credit score must be a min of 620 to be accepted by most lenders. Your income should be documented with a stable job history as well. Since USDA doesn’t have set loan amount limits, your monthly debt to income ratios will determine the loan amount /purchase price you qualify for.
Teachers that have questions can submit the short Info Request Form on this page for quick service. You can also contact us at 7 days a week at ph: 800-743-7556
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