Back in the day when houses cost a cool $100 bill and we defeated the Germans, people had the idea that saving 20% was the only way to buy a house. Interest rates were worse than credit card rates of today, the minimum wage ran in line with affording a normal life style.

But believe it or not, life has changed since then. College degrees don’t get you an amazing job, housing in the region is more expensive than 95% of the rest of the country and it’s not showing signs of slowing down, and more importantly you shouldn’t be paying $2,000 a month on a small house rental.

Today there are so many solutions for buying a house for all sorts of down payments. Let’s go over a couple of items.

3.5% down. This is what you need for a basic FHA mortgage if you have a credit score of 580 or above. This type of loan is pretty easy to work with. It does carry Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) which is no fun, but it’s less than paying someone else’s mortgage for them.
3% down. There are programs for 3% down for someone that hasn’t purchased a home in 3 years. There are very little restrictions to work with.
0% down. There are a few good options for this number. If you served in our military, thank you for your service and the VA program allows for 0% down with a fee rolled in. This is the best loan. There are a few hoops to jump through, but overall amazing loan.
0% down for non military. If you are like me and never served and have no way to qualify for a VA, down payment assistance is the way to go. My wife and I bought our house this way. The state offers down payment loans that carry no interest and have to be repaid when you refinance, sell, or pay off the house. I will cover more about this one in a further post.

Well there you have it, a super simplified reason why 20% is something of the past. If you or someone you know is interested in learning your options, finding out how to buy a house, or looking for some great movie recommendations, drop me a line and I’ll be happy to chat.