Peach Plus

The Georgia Dream for people Georgia Dream turned down

Earn too much for Georgia Dream? Owned a home before? Peach Plus is the same state agency with a much wider door - up to $12,500 in down payment help, and no first-time buyer requirement at all.

Talk with Johnnie

See how it works

The Georgia Dream for people Georgia Dream turned down

Most weeks I talk to somebody who was told no on Georgia Dream, and it is almost always one of two reasons. They earn too much, or they have owned a home before. Peach Plus exists for exactly those people, and hardly any buyer in Clayton County has heard of it.

Georgia DCA launched it in April 2024. Same agency, same kind of help, a far wider door.

What you get

3.5% of the purchase price, up to $10,000 for most buyers.
4% of the purchase price, up to $12,500 if you are a protector, educator or nurse, or your household includes a person with a disability - the same PEN and CHOICE categories as standard Georgia Dream.

It arrives as a second mortgage at 0 percent with no monthly payment, deferred. It is not forgivable. You repay the balance when you sell, refinance or move out. No interest, nothing due month to month, every dollar owed.

The two rules that make this different

You do not have to be a first-time buyer. DCA states it plainly - the program carries no first-time homebuyer requirement and serves first-time and repeat buyers alike. If you owned a house in 2019 and have rented since, standard Georgia Dream is closed to you. This one is not.

The income ceiling is far higher. Standard Georgia Dream caps a one or two person household in metro Atlanta at $137,555. Peach Plus caps it at $206,333, and at $237,282 for three or more people. That is not an adjustment. That is a different program.

The price ceiling moves too - $725,000 in metro Atlanta against $625,000 on the standard program. In Clayton County that is academic, since the county median is $249,900. It matters if you are shopping outside the county.

What has not changed

640 minimum credit score, or 660 for manufactured housing.
FHA and VA only. No conventional - that is what Peach Advantage is for.
Primary residence only. Not a rental, not a second home.
Homebuyer education is required through a HUD-approved agency, with an online course available for $50. Take it early. It is the most common avoidable reason a closing slips.
Debt-to-income capped at 45% for scores between 640 and 699. At 700 and above it follows automated underwriting.
Liquid assets may not exceed $20,000 or 20% of the sales price, whichever is greater, immediately after closing.
Property types: single-family detached or attached, manufactured homes, and agency-approved condominiums. Not two-to-four unit buildings, and nothing used for business.

Where I would actually use this in Clayton County

Two situations come up over and over.

The repeat buyer. Divorced, relocated, or sold years ago and rented since. Standard Georgia Dream will not look at them. Peach Plus will, and most of them have been told there is nothing out there for them.

The two-income household just over the line. A nurse married to a firefighter clears $137,555 without much trouble - and that same household qualifies for the PEN tier at $12,500. Under the standard program they are out on income. Under Peach Plus they are comfortably inside and collecting the larger amount.

One honest note before you get excited. Higher-assistance tiers generally carry a higher interest rate than the standard program. That is how these are built - the help is not free, it shows up in the rate. Have your lender price both side by side before you choose, because across thirty years the rate can outweigh the check.

I am a REALTOR®, not a lender. I will tell you which doors exist and what the rules say. Which one is cheapest for your situation is a conversation with a DCA-approved lender, and I will connect you with one.