Your name saw this post on The ActiveRain Real Estate Network and thought it might be of interest to you. Please see the link below to review the post.

Don't Lock Today's Buyers Out of Homeownership by Eliminating Down Payment Assitance Programs
It seems that down payment assistance programs (DPA) create a genuine divide among real estate professionals.  Some think they should be eliminated and others have seen value they bring to a buyer today.   Hopefully everyone can agree that no seller has to accept an offer that contains the use of a DPA or any seller concessions.  If a seller is uncomfortable with them then by all means advise them on other alternatives or wait for an offer from a more "qualified" buyer.
The press and some agents seem to be lumping together the use of  legitimate DPA's with the whole sub-prime mortgage mess.  They are two totally separate issues and should be examined as such.  During the hot Northern Virginia real estate market between 2001-2005 most sellers flat out rejected any offer that asked for closing cost assistance.  You had to fight tooth and nail to get a seller to even consider an FHA or VA loan as they were opposed to contributing the few hundred dollars in fees that those programs required in seller contribution.  There were some unscrupulous lenders and agents who were back-ending down payment assistance by manipulating offers and appraisals to be significantly higher than the asking price.  They then requested the ... more

__________________________________________________
Are you on The Rain? Grow Your Network!