If you are considering buying a home near the new Light Rail, you will want to be aware of a program called the Neighborhood Stabilization Program where you could get a grant for 22% of the purchase price of the home — as long as the home is a bank-owned property and you meet the income limits required.

Neighborhood Stabilization Program Overview
- The home you purchase must be your primary residence and you must agree to live in the property for a period of time (5,10,15 years) based on how much grant money you receive.
- Prior to writing an offer on the home, you must attend and complete an eight‐hour Homebuyer Education Class provided by one of the ADOH participating homebuyer counseling agencies. (A list will be provided by your lender once you begin the process.)
- You must have a maximum debt‐to‐income ratio of 31/43.
- You must have two months PITI reserves.
- You can use any type of financing with the NSP program – including paying cash. That means you can still get up to 22% of the purchase price even if you pay cash for the house.
- You must be approved and have your paperwork completed for the program prior to submitting an offer on a house.
The income limits for the program are based on family size - but for a family of 4 in Maricopa county, a family can have a maximum income of $79,100 in order to qualify. The property must be bank-owned (a Foreclosure) and only 1% of the down payment must come from the buyers own pocket — which means that the other 2.5% required by an FHA loan can be a gift from someone other than the seller or “interested party” (read: parents, relatives, etc.).
The Neighborhood Stabilization Program is a great program and will have money available for the next year or so, so be sure to act fast if you want to take advantage of the NSP program and the $8000 tax credit.
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