Homeownership Capital Programs – Washington State Department of Commerce
  • Languages

    • The Homeownership Capital Program provides capital funding through the Housing Trust Fund for various programs to provide homeownership opportunities to low-income first-time homebuyers.

    For detailed information on our programs see the HTF Handbook.

    • Down payment assistance revolving loan fund: For many homebuyers, the cash down payment needed to purchase a home can be a significant challenge. Down payment assistance provides cash at closing for first-time, low-income homebuyers to cover the downpayment and/or closing costs associated with a home purchase. Funds for this program are revolved to assist new homebuyers.
    • Acquisition of existing homes – resale restricted affordability subsidy: Funding for the acquisition of existing homes as a subsidy to reduce the price of the home for homebuyers. These homes are resale restricted to be sold to low-income homebuyers for a specified length of time.
    • Acquisition of existing homes with rehabilitation – resale restricted affordability subsidy: Funding for the acquisition and rehabilitation of existing homes, funds can be used for both the reduction of the price of the home for the homebuyer and rehabilitation of the home. These homes are resale restricted to be sold to low-income homebuyers for a specified length of time.
    • Community Land Trusts: A Community Land Trust is a non-profit organization that holds land in a trust in order to provide affordable housing. HTF funds the acquisition and new construction for homes to    be placed in a community land trust with resale restrictions. 
    • New construction – resale restricted: Funding for the construction of new resale restricted homes, including homes placed in a community land trust. HTF funds may also be used to pay development costs for new construction and acquisition/rehabilitation projects, including acquisition, infrastructure, and building construction and development soft costs.
    • Community Land Trust capacity building program: Training and education program to build capacity and promote the development of non-profit community land trust organizations across Washington state.
    • Resident owned manufactured home park cooperatives: Funding in partnership with Northwest Cooperative Development Center, funding available to assist residents of manufactured home parks to purchase their and covert their community into a cooperative.

    For potential homebuyers, please see our Homeownership Partners page for information on how to obtain Down Payment Assistance, agencies that provide self-help homes, community land trusts, and more.
     
    All Department of Commerce Homeownership Capital Programs resources are available to homebuyers who are at or below the area median income, adjusted for household size, in the county in which the home is located. The current approved AMI levels are 80% for King County and Urban locations and 100% AMI in Rural locations as designated in the HTF Handbook.

    The Housing Trust Fund program makes funds available for affordable housing projects through a competitive application process for eligible organizations. Applications are generally accepted once a year, but timing and frequency can vary depending on the size and nature of appropriations to the program by the Legislature.

    Visit this page regularly for funding availability and application updates.

    View Homeownership Funding Rounds and award recipients.

    The Housing Trust Fund (HTF) program requires an annual report for each homeownership project under contract. The report documents each project’s performance during the previous calendar year. To learn more about how HTF reviews reports and monitors contractors, please refer to Chapter 5 of the HTF Handbook (PDF).

    • When are annual reports due? Annual reports are due July 31st of the year after the reporting year. For example, reports for the year 2023 will be due July 31st, 2024.
    • How do I access WBARS? For information, instructions, and WBARS training opportunities, refer to the Washington State Housing Finance Commission’s WBARS webpage. A User Guide (PDF) is also available. Note: Please mark www.wbars.com as safe in your junk mail to ensure your email system will accept messages from WBARS.
    • Who do I contact about my annual report? Homeownership Annual Report Mailbox Email: htfhomeownership@commerce.wa.gov

    For more information on Community Land Trusts including a list of active CLT’s, visit the Northwest Community Landtrust Coalition.

    Other contacts:

    Page last updated:

    Homeownership