Purchase Assistance Program

What is Purchase Assistance Program?

Purchase Assistance Program is a grant for homebuyers in Chicago, Illinois.

• NHS Chicago's Purchase Assistance Program is an umbrella for several down-payment and closing-cost grant streams totaling up to $30,000 per buyer, available when financing a 1-4 unit Chicago primary residence through Neighborhood Lending Services (NLS), NHS's CDFI lending arm. Sub-programs include the standard NLS DPA, MMRP Purchase Assistance Grants (Micro-Market Recovery Program areas), TIF Purchase-Rehab grants, CHA Choose to Own assistance, and FHLBank Chicago Downpayment Plus (DPP) funds. Buyers must complete NHS HUD-approved homebuyer education.
• Up to $30,000 in down payment and closing-cost grant assistance when purchasing a 1-4 unit primary residence in the City of Chicago and financing through Neighborhood Lending Services (NLS), the lending arm of NHS Chicago. Grant is non-repayable as long as borrower satisfies any short owner-occupancy requirement attached to the funding stream. Multiple sub-programs (NLS DPA, CHA Choose to Own, TIF Purchase-Rehab, MMRP, FHLBank Chicago DPP) are aggregated under the Purchase Assistance umbrella.
• final grant amount and eligibility depend on funding source and AMI tier.
• Funding comes from Nonprofit, CDFI, Federal, HOME, CDBG, FHLB, and TIF.

Do you have to pay it back?

Purchase Assistance Program is structured as a grant, so it is not repaid.

• Repayment is triggered by Grant - generally non-repayable once funded and some sub-programs (e.g., FHLBank DPP) carry a 5-year retention period during which a prorated recapture applies if home is sold, refinanced, or non-occupied.
• The assistance is recorded in Grant (no lien) for most products; some FHLBank DPP grants recorded as soft second with retention period position.
• Forgiveness and repayment terms are set by the program and can change — confirm them on the official program page before applying.

Who qualifies?

Purchase Assistance Program is open to buyers who will live in the home as their primary residence.

What are the income limits?

Purchase Assistance Program limits household income to 120% of the area median income, which varies by county and household size.

• Household income up to 120% of Chicago-Naperville-Elgin MSA AMI; seed range $67,150-$213,000 spans across NHS sub-programs and household sizes.
• The limit applies to total household income, not only the borrower’s.
• Area median income figures are published by HUD and updated annually, so check the current table for the county before relying on a number.

What kind of home can it be used for?

Purchase Assistance Program caps the purchase price as follows: Per NLS first-mortgage product limits and HUD HOME/CDBG limits where applicable.

• Eligible property types include 1-4 unit residential primary residence (single-family, duplex, triplex, fourplex), condominium, townhouse.
• New construction is eligible.
• Manufactured homes are not eligible.

Where does it apply?

Purchase Assistance Program serves buyers purchasing in Chicago, Illinois.

• The program targets specific areas: MMRP (Micro-Market Recovery Program) neighborhoods and TIF districts receive higher grant tiers; see NHS Grants Portal for current target-area maps.

How do you apply?

Applications for Purchase Assistance Program go through the administering agency, which publishes the current terms and the application steps on its own site.

1. 1

   Take a homebuyer education course

   Required by the program, through NHS Chicago HUD-certified homebuyer education and one-on-one housing counseling (required prior to grant award)..

2. 2

   Contact the administering agency to reserve funds

   Funds are reserved through Application via NHS Grants Portal (nhschicago.org/grantsportal) following NHS housing counseling intake; grants subject to availability per sub-program funding stream, and are subject to availability.

3. 3

   Work with a lender who handles the program

   Hey Prescott is not a lender and does not accept applications; this page describes the program so a buyer can take it to a lender or housing counselor.