Orlando Garcia, REALTOR®  |  The GO Team Real Estate Services  |  HomeSmart Realty Group

CalHFA Down Payment Assistance — Complete Guide for Downey & Southeast LA Buyers

Last updated: June 2026

CalHFA is the California Housing Finance Agency, and its MyHome Assistance Program is one of the most widely used down payment assistance tools in the state. If you're buying your first home in Downey or the surrounding area, there's a good chance this program should be part of your strategy.

Here's exactly how it works.

What CalHFA MyHome Actually Is

It's a deferred-payment junior loan — not a grant. That's an important distinction. The money doesn't disappear. You'll eventually repay it, but you don't make monthly payments on it. Repayment is deferred until you sell the home, refinance, or pay off your first mortgage.

What it does in the short term: it covers part of your down payment (and in some cases, closing costs), reducing the cash you need to bring to the table on day one.

How Much Help Can You Actually Get?

The assistance is a percentage of the purchase price, not a flat dollar amount. Here's what the numbers look like on real home prices in Downey and Southeast LA County:

• On a $700,000 home with an FHA loan: up to $24,500
• On a $750,000 home with an FHA loan: up to $26,250
• On a $700,000 home with a conventional loan: up to $21,000

For many first-time buyers in Downey, this covers most or all of their required down payment. Combined with seller concessions for closing costs, some buyers get into a home with very little out-of-pocket cash.

Who Qualifies

First-time buyer status: You cannot have owned a home in the last three years. If you owned a home more than three years ago and have been renting since, you may still qualify. CalHFA uses the three-year lookback rule, not a lifetime definition of "first-time buyer."

Income: Your household income must fall under the LA County limit. For CalHFA MyHome, that limit is $211,000. That's a generous threshold — most working families in Downey qualify. This is a household income figure, meaning all borrowers on the loan get counted together.

Credit: You'll need to meet the requirements of your first mortgage. FHA typically requires a 580 or higher credit score. Conventional loans typically require 620 or higher. The first mortgage sets the bar — CalHFA MyHome itself doesn't add a separate credit requirement on top of that.

Occupancy: The home must be your primary residence. Investment properties and vacation homes don't qualify.

No sales price limit: California removed the sales price cap on CalHFA loans. There's no ceiling on the purchase price — only on the income limit and the assistance percentage.

How to Apply

You can't get CalHFA assistance directly — it goes through a CalHFA-approved lender. The lender handles the application for both your first mortgage and the MyHome junior loan at the same time. You don't submit two separate applications to two different places — it all runs through one lender who is set up for the program.

1. Find a CalHFA-approved lender (not all lenders offer this — you need to ask specifically)
2. Complete a CalHFA-approved homebuyer education course (this is required before you can close)
3. Get pre-approved for the first mortgage AND the MyHome assistance
4. Find a home and make an offer
5. Close with both loans in place

What CalHFA Doesn't Cover

CalHFA MyHome covers down payment and closing costs up to the percentage limit. It doesn't cover:

• Repairs or renovations to the home
• Moving costs
• Furniture or appliances
• Property taxes beyond the proration at closing
• HOA fees or dues
• Home inspections or appraisal fees (these come out of pocket before closing)

Think of it as help getting through the front door — not help furnishing what's inside.

The Repayment Picture

The loan is deferred — no monthly payments while you live in the home. But when you sell, refinance, or pay off your first mortgage, you repay the original loan amount. There's no interest if you stay in the home. This is genuinely one of the more favorable repayment structures in the assistance space.

Here's what that looks like in practice: You borrow $24,500 today to cover your down payment. Seven years from now, you sell the home. At closing, you repay $24,500 from your proceeds — the same amount you borrowed, with no interest added. The rest of your equity is yours.

Can You Stack CalHFA With Other Programs?

Yes. CalHFA is designed to work alongside other assistance programs, including LACDA. Stacking programs is one of the most powerful strategies for minimizing cash-to-close.

The CalHFA first mortgage (FHA or conventional) can serve as the base, with MyHome covering the down payment, and LACDA potentially covering additional costs. The combination can bring your total out-of-pocket at closing down significantly — sometimes to under $10,000 on a $700,000 purchase.

See the program stacking guide and the comparison guide for more detail on how CalHFA works alongside other programs.