Governor Quinn Announces New “Welcome Home Illinois” Home Loan Program for First-Time Buyers

By Gabriel Circiog, Associate Editor

Illinois Governor Pat Quinn recently announced the new Welcome Home Illinois program which aims to help Illinois’ first-time home buyers. The program provides $7,500 in down-payment assistance with an interest rate as low as 3.99 percent for a secure, 30-year fixed rate mortgage.

“Welcome Home Illinois will provide more opportunities for everyday people across Illinois to have their chance at homeownership,” Quinn says. “Homeownership and home-buying are essential to our economy. That’s why we are rolling out the welcome mat for families and hardworking men and women by giving them the resources they need to pack up and move into a new home.”

The program is funded through Illinois Jobs Now! and the Illinois Affordable Housing Trust Fund. The program is open to first-time buyers or anyone who hasn’t owned a home in the last three years in Illinois. Borrower income limits are up to 140 percent of the area median income, or $106,120 for a family of three or more in Cook County and $82,915 for a family of three or more in Springfield. The home buyer is required to have a credit score of at least 640.

Through the program home buyers can receive a forgivable loan of $7,500 that is secured by a second mortgage to help with closing costs or down payment. The borrowers are required to contribute the greater of one percent of the overall purchase price or $1,000 toward the down payment.

Apart from creating new ownership opportunities the Welcome Home Illinois loan will also stimulate statewide economic activity. It is estimated that the program will generate 1,500 full-time jobs, $50 million from real estate-related industries, $40 million in economic activity for the state and an extra $16 million in other statewide spending.

“Governor Quinn understands there’s never been a better time to buy a home in Illinois, so he created Welcome Home Illinois to help more buyers take advantage of historically low-interest rates,” says IHDA Executive Director Mary R. Kenney. “Now that Illinois’ economic recovery is gaining momentum, housing prices are trending up and buying a home will enable families and individuals to build wealth for their future.”