Down payment and loan programs in Clayton County

Eighteen programs, and nobody needs all eighteen. Most buyers here use two or three, stacked in the right order.

Each one below has its own page with the income limits, the credit minimums, the price caps and the catch written out plainly. That includes the programs that do not work in this county, because knowing what to stop chasing saves you as much time as knowing what to chase.

Two shortcuts if you would rather not read eighteen pages. The down payment quiz asks nine questions and tells you which of these apply to you, on the screen, no email required. The programs guide is the narrative version, grouped by what you are trying to do, including the two stacking rules that trip people up.

Money toward the down payment

• Georgia Dream - up to $10,000 statewide. A 0% second mortgage, not a grant.
• Georgia Dream PEN - $12,500 for protectors, educators and nurses. Active and retired military count.
• Georgia Dream CHOICE - $12,500 when the household includes a person with a disability.
• Georgia Dream Peach Plus - up to $12,500 with no first-time buyer requirement, income to $206,333 in metro Atlanta. FHA and VA.
• Georgia Dream Peach Advantage - 2% to 5% on a conventional loan, or no assistance and a lower rate instead. Income to 150% of area median.
• Clayton County DPA - up to $7,500, or $10,000 for veterans, first responders, teachers, nurses and county employees.
• National Faith HomeBuyers - free HUD-approved counseling and generally $5,000 to $15,000.
• ANDP and FHLBank Atlanta - generally $15,000 to $20,000, first come first served, and the money runs out.

The mortgage underneath it

• FHA 203(b) - 3.5% down at a 580 score. The mortgage insurance does not fall off.
• Conventional 97 - 3% down, 620 minimum, and the PMI cancels at 80% loan-to-value.
• VA home loan - zero down, and no monthly mortgage insurance, ever.
• USDA 502 Guaranteed - does not work in Clayton County. We sit inside the Atlanta metro. The page explains where it does work.

If you served

• Peach Select VA - Georgia's VA pairing. It will not stack with the Georgia Dream second mortgage. One or the other.
• Disabled veteran homestead - up to $121,812 off your assessed value (2025 ceiling, indexed annually), filed by April 1.

If the house needs work

• FHA 203(k) - one loan covering the purchase and the renovation.

Lower the monthly payment instead of the down payment

• Mortgage Credit Certificate - up to $2,000 a year off your federal tax bill, every year you live there.
• Clayton senior homestead - 65 or older by January 1, with an income test that excludes Social Security.

If you are 62 or older

• HECM for Purchase - buy with roughly 45% to 62% down and carry no monthly mortgage payment. The page walks both sides of it honestly.

Where to start

Stacked correctly, the help available on a Clayton County purchase reaches about $22,500. That is arithmetic, not a headline, and it depends entirely on which of these you qualify for.

Nearly all of them need an approved lender and the eight-hour homebuyer class before closing. Take the class early - it is the most common avoidable reason a closing slips.

Answer the nine questions and I will point you at the ones that fit, or come to the workshop and we will go through your numbers in the room. No pressure, no pitch.