Down Payment and Home Repair Assistance in the Triad
The questions you didn’t know to ask about paying for a home.
Buying a home takes more cash than most people expect, and fixing one up can take even more. Help exists for both, much of it run by the state, cities, and counties, and a lot of buyers never hear about it. Below is a plain-language overview of what’s available around the Triad and how these programs usually work. Details and funding change often, so use this as a starting point and confirm current terms with the program or a lender.
Statewide help: NC Housing Finance Agency
The NC Housing Finance Agency (NCHFA) is the state’s public housing agency. Two of its programs are worth knowing about.
NC Home Advantage Mortgage
A 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FHA, VA, USDA, or conventional) available through participating lenders. It’s open to repeat buyers as well as first-time buyers. NCHFA doesn’t lend directly, so you apply through a participating lender.
Basic requirements:
- Buy a home in North Carolina and live in it as your primary residence
- A credit score of 640 or higher (the middle or lower of your scores)
- A debt-to-income ratio of 45% or less
- Income at or below a single statewide limit, $158,000 as of July 2026. It’s the same in every county, doesn’t depend on household size, and can change.
- A homebuyer education class if all borrowers are first-time buyers
Optional 3% down payment assistance
Eligible buyers may be able to add a separate down payment assistance loan of up to 3% of the mortgage amount. It’s available only with the NC Home Advantage Mortgage, and not every buyer or purchase will qualify. The option can also be unavailable for a time when interest rates are high, so ask your lender what’s currently offered. When it is available, the assistance can go toward your down payment, closing costs, and prepaid items.
Only the assistance loan is forgivable, never the main mortgage. It carries no interest and no payments for the first 10 years. Then 20% is forgiven at the end of each year from year 11 through year 15, so the whole amount is forgiven after 15 years. If you sell or refinance before then, you repay the portion not yet forgiven. Your main mortgage is repaid in the usual way either way. The assistance can’t be used for repairs, to pay off debts, collections, or judgments, or to pay real estate commissions.
NC 1st Home Advantage Down Payment
$15,000 in down payment assistance for first-time buyers, qualifying veterans, and buyers purchasing in qualified census tracts. Its income limits are set under federal rules and vary by county and family size, so check the current limits for the county where you’re buying. A lender can tell you whether a specific address qualifies.
Local programs by area
Many cities and counties have their own homebuyer programs, and the terms vary a lot from place to place. Amounts, income limits, and requirements can differ, and funding may run out or reset, so treat what follows as a general picture and check with each program for current details.
Winston-Salem and Forsyth County
Forsyth County has offered homebuyer assistance for properties outside the City of Winston-Salem and the Town of Walkertown, and the City of Winston-Salem has had a separate program for homes inside city limits. Additional help may be available through NCHFA’s Community Partners Loan Pool, which can work alongside the NC Home Advantage Mortgage through local partners. Funds may be first-come, first-served, and a homebuyer education class or housing counseling session might be required.
Greensboro and Guilford County
Greensboro’s Housing Connect GSO homebuyer assistance program may be available to first-time buyers, or to buyers who haven’t owned a home in recent years, for homes inside city limits. Income limits may apply, and a homebuyer education class or housing counseling session might be required. Additional help may be available for homes in designated reinvestment areas. Guilford County has had a separate program for homes outside the Greensboro and High Point city limits, so ask about its current status.
High Point
High Point has two homebuyer assistance programs, depending on where in the city you’re buying. The City-Wide Homebuyer Assistance Program may be available as a deferred, low-interest loan toward down payment, closing costs, and prepaid expenses for homes outside the Core City area. Income limits may apply, buyers might be asked to contribute some of their own funds, and a pre-purchase education class might be required. The Core City Homebuyer Incentive Program is a separate incentive for homes in the defined Core City area, and it may not have income limits. Sales price limits may apply to both.
Lexington, Thomasville, and Other Triad Counties
Programs in Davidson County (including Lexington and Thomasville) and in Alamance, Caswell, Davie, Randolph, Rockingham, Stokes, Surry, Wilkes, and Yadkin counties are less widely published, and what’s offered may vary a lot from one county or town to the next. Ask a lender who works with NC Housing Finance Agency products, or contact the county or town housing office, about what might be available. NC Housing’s statewide programs above may still apply wherever you’re buying.
Help with repairs and renovations
Not all assistance is for buying. Some of it helps with fixing up a home.
- If you already own your home: Some cities and counties may offer repair or rehabilitation help to qualifying homeowners, sometimes as a forgivable loan. Winston-Salem’s TURN program, for example, has offered a 5-year forgivable loan for housing rehabilitation to qualified low-to-moderate-income homeowners within city limits, with applications accepted only during a limited window. Other Triad cities and counties may run similar programs, and eligibility, funding, and timing vary.
- If you’re buying a home that needs work: NC Housing’s down payment assistance can’t be used for repairs. Renovation loans, which roll repair costs into the mortgage so you finance the purchase and the repairs together, may be an option. Ask a lender whether one fits your situation.
How these programs usually work
Every program sets its own rules, but a few things come up often:
- Income limits. Many programs are for low-to-moderate-income households. Limits may differ by program, county, and household size, so a program that fits a buyer in one place may not fit in the next.
- Primary residence. The home generally needs to be your main residence.
- Education class. Some programs require a homebuyer education course before closing, and others may recommend one.
- Credit counseling and financial coaching. Some programs include credit counseling, and some may also offer help with managing or consolidating debt, to get buyers loan-ready. If your credit or debt isn’t where it needs to be yet, ask the program administrator what support they offer.
- Forgivable or deferred loans. Some are forgiven over time as long as you stay in the home. Others may come due if you sell, refinance, or move within a set period.
- Limited funds. Many programs have a limited pool of money, and some are first-come, first-served, so starting early can matter.
- Go through a lender. Most assistance is arranged through a participating lender, so it helps to get pre-approved with one who knows these programs.
Where to start
If you’re thinking about buying, or you own a home that needs work, I’m glad to talk it through and point you to the right people. No pressure, just a conversation.
Program details change often and vary by household. This page is general information, not financial or legal advice. Confirm current terms with the program administrator or a lender.