Match the Alabama property, mortgage and assistance before applying
The Alabama Housing Finance Authority offers homebuyer programs through participating lenders. Use the city directories above to research mortgage providers, then check AHFA's program list with your loan officer. A listing in this independent directory does not establish AHFA participation or an assistance reservation.
Use the participating-lender list and check the actual property
AHFA does not make mortgage loans directly to homebuyers. Its application page lists active participating lenders with separate First Step and Step Up columns and offers a contact form for help finding a lender. Confirm the named program with the loan officer handling your file, then ask which current mortgage, income and property requirements apply before paying for an application or planning around assistance.
First Step's ownership rule depends on the property's target-area status: eligible repeat buyers can be considered in target areas, while non-target areas require no homeownership in the previous three years. AHFA directs buyers to search the property address in its Target Area Status Map. Have the lender confirm that result and the applicable income and sales-price limits. Both First Step and Step Up cover purchases of new or existing Alabama homes; refinancing an existing mortgage does not qualify under their published eligibility rules.
Separate the assistance loan from a possible closing-cost grant
First Step and Step Up describe down payment assistance secured by a 10-year second mortgage alongside a 30-year fixed-rate first mortgage. AHFA says ServiSolutions services the loans with one combined monthly payment. Ask for a breakdown showing both loans, the assistance payment and total housing costs. Request the note's payoff terms for a sale or refinance; a combined bill does not turn the second mortgage into a grant or establish that repayment is deferred.
AHFA's Affordable Income Subsidy Grant is a separate closing-cost resource for qualifying HFA Advantage conventional borrowers using First Step or Step Up. Its income limits depend on the home's county location. Ask the lender to check the property's current limit and confirm whether the grant can accompany your mortgage and assistance loan. Do not assume that an FHA, VA or USDA version of an AHFA mortgage carries this conventional-only grant, or that every participating borrower receives it.
Confirm the course before enrolling and find help with preparation
AHFA explicitly requires homeownership education for Step Up and the Affordable Income Subsidy Grant. Ask the participating lender which course, completion document and deadline it accepts for your selected product, including First Step if that is your route. Keep a municipal assistance program's requirements separate: completing one course should not be assumed to satisfy every program attached to the purchase.
AHFA's homebuyer resources point Alabama buyers toward HUD housing counseling. HUD's counseling information includes pre-purchase help, budgeting and credit services, and warns that agencies do not all provide every service. Call 800-569-4287 to find an agency and ask for homebuying preparation, available appointment formats and any fee. A counselor can help you organize questions and a purchase budget; the participating lender still reviews the mortgage application.
Published by Mortgage Firm, an independent directory. Program administrators and lenders determine current availability and eligibility. Our editorial approach