In many NC Counties, you have to check the USDA website to make certain that the property you want to purchase is located within the USDA “footprint.” But if you are buying in Johnston County – you’re safe! The WHOLE COUNTY qualifies for USDA Zero No Money Down Home Loans.
That’s right, Johnston County Qualifies for USDA Home Loans, and it’s our understanding that it’s one of the LARGEST concentrations of USDA Home Loans in the Southeast. Every December the USDA Home Loan Maps are scheduled to be re-evaluated and will normally see slight changes.
To qualify for the program you need to have decent credit, and you need to buy a house that is located within the USDA Home Loan footprint – and you must be under the income limits for the county.
For now, at least, since the whole Joco Nation qualifies for USDA, all you have to check is your income. You just need to be certain that once you add up all of the gross income for everyone in your home (whether they are on the loan or not) and check to see that you are not OVER the maximum for the area.
The income limits vary by County in NC – so if you start out looking for a home in Johnston County, and you end up buying in Harnett County you’ll need to check the limits again. USDA No Money Down Home Loans have adjustments to income for things like Child Care, so be sure to check those adjustments too!
In Johnston County, the 2018 maximum income limits for USDA mortgages have recently changed! The newest numbers are:
1 to 4 persons in the home $96,950
5 or more persons in the home $127,950
The main thing you need to remember when applying for USDA no money home loans is that you need to have good credit – and you can not have total debts (with your mortgage payments) of more than 41% of your monthly gross income, or we’ll need to do a Debt Waiver request.
Below you will see the areas near Johnston County that no longer qualify for USDA Home Loans. The main areas that are impacted are those that are close to Garner and Knightdale, well within the Wake County Borders.
This is a GREAT news, because earlier maps showed HUGE chunks of real estate in Johnston County that would no longer qualify for the program. According to the most recent Congressional decisions, ALL of Johnston County will continue to qualify for USDA Loans Clayton through at least the end of 2018.
The following map shows what parts of Wake County currently qualify for the USDA Program, the shaded areas do not qualify. The 2nd map shows where the maps are changing on June 4, 2018
You can see that effective June 4, 2018 we will no longer be able to offer USDA Home Loans in Knightdale City Limits.
We recently did a comparison of all No Money Down Home Loans in NC, and we believe that for the person who wants to live in a rural setting like Johnston County, this is still the one of the best programs available. For a limited time, there’s also a **$8,000 grant available to home buyers** who have not owned a home in the past 3 years. The grant can be used for down payment or closing costs, and is forgiven after you live in the home years 11 through 15 that you live in the home. There are a limited number of these grants available, but we are one of only a few Banks offering this program.
**A Quick Note**
We refer to these programs as “mortgage grants” because there are no payments to be made, there is no interest charge, and there’s no expectation that you will have to repay ANY of the money you receive for down payment, unless you move out of the property or refinance prior to the dates assigned by your specific down payment assistance program. The literal term for this down payment assistance program is a “forgivable loan.” Under the terms of the program that best suits you, a portion of this down payment assistance will be forgiven on a schedule that we will share with you when you make loan application. These funds are available to us through NC Housing (NCHFA) and are available through other lenders in the state as well. The interest rates for these programs, however, will not vary from lender to lender as that is set by NC Housing.
If you have specific questions about what parts of Johnston County Qualifies for USDA Home Loans / or about the USDA No Money Down Home Loans and how you might qualify using this program – please call Steve and Eleanor Thorne, NC USDA Home Loan Experts , 919-649-5058.
Like what you did. Here’s wishing you a very happy and prosperous new year !