Florida Homebuyer Opportunity Program (FL HOP)

The Florida Homebuyer Opportunity Program (FL HOP) - created during the 2009 regular legislative session - is scheduled to have funds available ($30 million) by the first week of August, 2009. The FL HOP program will be administered through the State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) program; offices are located in all 67 counties and 53 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) entitlement cities. Eligible FL HOP applicants can receive up to $8,000 in purchase assistance, which is expected to be repaid by the applicant upon receipt of his/her federal tax refund from their federal first time homebuyer tax credit established through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Highlights and Exceptions of the FL HOP program include:

• Borrowers who access the $8,000 tax credit through a state or local government program may use it to make up the required 3.5% down payment on an FHA loan; those who access through any other FHA-approved lender must (as with any standard FHA loan), provide the 3.5% themselves.
• The maximum award shall not exceed 10% of the purchase price or $8,000 - whichever is less.
• If the county or eligible municipality receives repayment from the homebuyer within 18 months after the closing date of the loan, the county or eligible municipality shall waive all interest charges. A homebuyer who fails to fully repay the loan within 18 months shall be subject to repayment terms (including interest) provided in an appropriate strategy for the local housing assistance plan within 36 months.
• There is no requirement for state or local government programs to reserve 30 percent of the funds for awards to very-low-income persons or to expend 75% of funds for construction, rehabilitation or emergency repairs.

For additional information on the program, please visit www.floridahousing.org. For more information on the federal governments first time home buyer tax credit, here's a good review: First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit

Metro Mortgage Company is a federally regulated Mortgage Banker specializing in residential Florida home loans including Conventional, Jumbo and FHA/VA mortgages. Visit our home loan approval process page for more information or call us today at 888-617-3674.

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