Fannie Mae (Federal National Mortgage Association) offers an enhanced, affordable lending product, the HomeReady Mortgage as down payments as low as 3%.
A real innovation is that income from any household member other than the actual buyer will be taken into account for eligibility. Also, family members who don’t live on the property can be co-borrowers on the loan. This enables parents to assist their children in qualifying for a mortgage to purchase that first home. Rental payments from an apartment in the home may also help qualify an applicant.