Massachusetts First-Time Home Buyer Programs and Grants

MassHousing makes affordable first mortgages and down-payment assistance available through approved banks, credit unions, and mortgage companies. Its consumer materials currently advertise up to $30,000 in down-payment assistance statewide, but the exact first mortgage, assistance amount, interest rate, repayment terms, and eligibility depend on the active product when the lender locks the loan.

ONE Mortgage is administered through the Massachusetts Housing Partnership and offered by participating lenders. The Commonwealth describes it as a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with a 3% minimum down payment for a condominium, single-family, or two-family home, generally 5% for a three-family property, no private mortgage insurance, and possible payment assistance for qualified borrowers.

MassHousing loans can be used in every Massachusetts city and town for eligible primary-residence purchases. The agency's current eligibility page identifies single-family homes, condominiums, and two-to-four-family properties as possible property types and lists an illustrative statewide income ceiling, but the applicable limit and underwriting requirements depend on the loan product, location, household, property, and current matrix.

You do not apply directly to MassHousing. An approved lender evaluates the first mortgage and any paired assistance. First-time buyers generally must complete approved homebuyer education, and buyers of multifamily properties may have additional counseling requirements.

ONE Mortgage generally defines a first-time buyer as someone who has not owned a home during the previous three years. Current Commonwealth guidance also lists homebuyer education, household-income limits, an asset limit, minimum credit scores, owner occupancy, and participating-lender approval among its requirements.

The program's published minimum credit score is generally 640 for a single-family home or condominium and 660 for a two- or three-family property. Its current household asset limit is $75,000, excluding certain retirement and college savings accounts. Treat these as screening criteria rather than an approval promise; obtain a current determination from a ONE Mortgage lender.

Many programs use a three-year lookback, but the definition is program-specific. Prior ownership outside the United States, a partial interest, inherited property, a manufactured home, or ownership by another household member may be treated differently depending on the program.

Disclose every current and recent real-estate interest to the lender and program administrator. Do not rely on the fact that a property is outside Massachusetts or outside the country.

MassHousing and ONE Mortgage require approved education in common first-time-buyer scenarios, and local assistance programs may impose their own course or counseling rules. Complete the correct course early enough to avoid delaying an offer or loan application.

MassHousing publishes approved education providers and states that buyers do not have to attend a course in the town where they live or plan to buy. Ask the intended lender or assistance program to confirm that the provider, course format, and completion certificate meet its current requirements before enrolling.

Cities, towns, community-development organizations, and housing nonprofits may offer assistance tied to a location, employer, income band, property type, or source of public funding. Some can be combined with a statewide mortgage; others cannot.

Search where you plan to buy and ask the participating lender to identify compatible programs. Local funds can be limited or allocated in application order, so do not include them in an offer budget until eligibility and availability are confirmed in writing.

The word assistance does not mean free money. A program may provide a grant, a forgivable loan, a zero- or low-interest deferred loan, an amortizing second mortgage, or assistance with resale restrictions. Repayment may be triggered by sale, refinance, payoff, transfer, rental, or the home no longer being your primary residence.

Compare the full package: interest rate, annual percentage rate, mortgage insurance, second payment, cash to close, reserves, repayment events, and five-year borrowing cost. A conventional mortgage with less assistance can sometimes cost less overall.

Start with education and a participating lender before shopping at the top of your budget. Ask the lender to screen you for MassHousing, ONE Mortgage, and compatible local assistance rather than assuming only one path applies.

Request answers tied to the exact product, not a general description from a website or advertisement.