Apply For Home Down Payment Assistance Program

In April and May of 2017, the community of Doniphan suffered from a natural disaster including heavy rains, straight line winds, flooding and tornados.

Through federal funding awarded by the Missouri Department of Economic Development to Ripley County and the City of Doniphan, Ozark Foothills Regional Planning Commission (OFRPC) is offering to help applicants secure a down payment for a home through a down payment assistance pro-gram.

Once determined eligible, available funding up to 100 percent of the down payment will be awarded to the client through a CDBG DR grant.

OFRPC will work with the clients throughout the process to get them into a new home.

The grant will be secured with a lien on the property for the amount of CDBG DR assistance through a Deed of Mortgage and Restrictive Covenants for a five (5) year affordability period. Customary and reasonable closing costs (not to exceed six percent of the total loan, and cannot exceed 100 percent of the total down payment) will be covered.

The household annual total adjusted gross income of the applicant must be under 120 percent of the Subrecipient’s Area Median Income (AMI). (See graphics).

An OFRPC representative will be available to meet with applicants, at a time that works for them, to discuss the down payment assistance program.

Some restrictions will apply and applicants must meet income eligibility guide as follows:

The applicant will select a lender and get a pre-approval letter for their home loan.

They will then make an appointment with OFRPC to complete an application and provide the required documents. The representative will provide a list of documents to bring to the appointment.

Once the application is completed, it will be reviewed for eligibility.

The client will receive a determination letter from Ripley County.

Next, the client should begin searching for a single family home. It must be located inside the 63935 zip code area, and must not be located in a floodway or floodplain.

Area realtors will have information to share on the program with applicants.

Once the home has been chosen and the client is deemed eligible, the home will undergo an environmental review performed by OFRPC, lead screening, termite and DSS inspections.

Clients must complete an 8-hour home ownership course provided by a HUD Certified housing counselor, then submit a copy of the certificate of completion to the OFRPC representative.

As a final step, the client will work with their lender to finalize mortgage documents and the grant award will be provided to the lender as the down payment.

For more information contact OFRPC representative Rachel Coleman: rachel@ofrpc.org.