Guides / Down Payment Assistance / District of Columbia

Down Payment Assistance in District of Columbia

Washington, DC is not a U.S. state, so there is no separate 'state housing finance agency' — its equivalent function is served by the DC Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA) and the DC Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), both verified via official dchfa.org, dhcd.dc.gov, and the DC government's own frontdoor.dc.gov portal. The two flagship, currently active programs are HPAP (a DHCD-run deferred 0%-interest gap-financing loan up to $202,000 plus $4,000 closing cost help, restricted to first-time buyers under DHCD income limits) and DC Open Doors (a DCHFA-run 3%-3.5% down payment assistance loan open to first-time AND repeat buyers, requiring a 640 credit score and income near $199,200). Exact current-year AMI income tables for HPAP and the precise 2026 Open Doors income ceiling were not fully extractable from source PDFs (encoding issues), so those specific dollar figures should be reconfirmed directly with DHCD/DCHFA before publishing to end users.

Programs

Home Purchase Assistance Program (HPAP)

DC Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD)

Amount: Up to $202,000 in down payment/gap financing assistance as a deferred, 0% interest loan, plus up to $4,000 in separate closing cost assistance. Very low- and low-income borrowers have no monthly payments; moderate-income borrowers get 5 years deferred then principal-only payments amortized over 40 years. Full balance is due on sale, refinance, or if the home stops being the primary residence.

Type: Deferred 0%-interest forgivable/repayable second loan (gap financing) + separate closing cost grant/loan, run by the DC city government (DC has no separate 'state' HFA program beyond DCHFA/DHCD since it is not a state)

Must be a first-time homebuyer (no ownership interest in any residential real estate in the 3 years prior to application), head of household, DC resident purchasing a home in DC as primary residence, household income within DHCD's very low-to-moderate income limits (up to 110% of area median income, AMI), and must 'possess a good credit rating' (no specific minimum FICO score published).

DC Open Doors – Down Payment Assistance Loan (DPAL)

DC Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA)

Amount: 3% of the purchase price/appraised value (whichever is lower) for HFA Preferred/HFA Advantage conventional loans, or 3.5% for FHA Plus loans. Provided as a 0% interest, non-amortizing, deferred second-lien loan repayable only upon sale, refinance, or payoff of the first mortgage (commonly cited as due after the first 5 years or at transfer/refinance).

Type: Down payment/closing cost assistance loan paired with a first mortgage (conventional HFA Preferred/Advantage or FHA), administered through DCHFA-approved participating lenders

Minimum credit score of 640; borrower gross annual income at or below approximately $199,200 (income limits are updated periodically by DCHFA, so figure should be reconfirmed with DCHFA/lender at application); debt-to-income ratio under 50%; property must be a single-family home, condo, or 2-4 unit property in DC used as primary residence; open to both first-time AND repeat homebuyers (DC residency and first-time buyer status are NOT required), though borrowers cannot own another property at settlement; maximum first mortgage loan amount around $726,200.

Facts on this page reflect research current as of 2026-07-05. Programs, rates, and laws change — confirm current figures with the relevant state agency before relying on them.

Related Resources

Property Taxes in District of Columbia Transfer Tax & Closing Costs in District of Columbia Buyer-Agent Agreements in District of Columbia Seller Disclosure Laws in District of Columbia Find Agents in District of Columbia Down Payment Calculator