Home Advantage is a mortgage loan program offered by the Washington State Housing Finance Commission through participating lenders across the state. It offers a range of downpayment assistance options as well as competitive interest rates. Your lender will qualify you on a typical 30-year mortgage loan using our interest rate. To get started, contact one of our partner lenders or take a FREE homebuyer education class. You can learn more about Home Advantage here.

You can use our Home Advantage home loans to purchase a one-unit single-family home, a townhome, a condominium, a manufactured home, or a two-unit (duplex) single-family home.

Household annual income must not exceed $215,000 (statewide).

Our downpayment assistance is only for homebuyers who use our home loan programs, either Home Advantage or House Key Opportunity. If your household income is under the program limits (up to $215,000) and you are otherwise qualified for a home loan, you are probably eligible. Connect with a Commission-trained lender today, or find a free homebuyer education class near you!

No, Target Areas are only relevant to the House Key Opportunity program. See the Target Area map here.

Yes, our home loans and downpayment assistance work with homes purchased through Habitat for Humanity or a Community Land Trust. The House Key Opportunity program offers special rates for borrowers who are purchasing a home through an approved affiliate member of Habitat for Humanity of Washington State or a home in a Community Land Trust, and who earn no more than 65% of area median income, based on household size and county in which they are buying. See the charts below to determine 65% of Area Median Income for the borrower.

65% AMI Chart – 2025

65% AMI Chart – 2024

The Commission accepts DACA-status borrowers on Fannie Mae HFA Preferred for the Home Advantage and House Key programs only. Please note ITIN is not permitted.

A homebuyer whose income is under 80% of the Area Median Income for the county in which they are buying a home can get a lower rate on conventional loans (as distinct from government loans through FHA, VA or USDA). The 80% threshold is set by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

2025 80% AMI Limits for Conventional Loans

2024 80% AMI Limits for Conventional Loans

PLEASE NOTE: This information does not determine eligibility and should not be relied on for any other purpose than determining rates on conventional loans.

A rate buydown is a mortgage financing option where a borrower pays an upfront fee (or the seller or lender pays on their behalf) to reduce the interest rate on the loan for the entire life of the mortgage. This results in lower monthly payments. To request a rate buydown, please use this form. 

If completed within the last six months, an inspection report given to the buyer from the seller or a previous buyer may be acceptable in lieu of a new inspection. The buyer must submit a written request to waive a new inspection. The buyer must state in the request that they reviewed the report, are satisfied with the condition of the property per the report, and hold the Commission harmless.

No. The Home Advantage loan program uses no taxpayer dollars.

The Home Advantage DPA program allows a borrower to own another home at the time of closing per agency guidelines as long as: 1) it was not financed through the Commission, and 2) the borrower intends to occupy the new home.

Funds for the Home Advantage program are continuously available and are subject to market rates and conditions. If you have questions about the Home Advantage Program, please call us at 800.767.4663 or email info@heretohome.org or Corinna.Obar@wshfc.org.