Cambridge First-Time Homebuyer Program, MA (2026)

Saving for a down payment while paying Cambridge rent looks impossible on paper, yet the city pays part of the price for qualified buyers.

Cambridge's $10,000 forgivable down payment loan, the HomeBridge open-market subsidy, and deed-restricted resale and lottery units offer three distinct routes to buying here.

Check Your Massachusetts Home Purchase Eligibility

Once you match your income to the right option and weigh the equity limits, you can put the application steps in order.

What Cambridge Offers Right Now

The City of Cambridge runs four homebuying paths through its Community Development Department (CDD) Housing Department, all open as of October 2026, and statewide MassHousing and MHP ONE Mortgage loans also work in the city. Because funding, income limits, and rules change periodically, confirm the current numbers below with the Housing Department or a participating lender.

When people search for the "Cambridge Financial Assistance Program," they usually mean the first two rows in the table: Cambridge Down Payment Assistance and HomeBridge.

Find Your Income Tier First

Every Cambridge program is tied to a percentage of Area Median Income (AMI), so your gross household income decides which doors are open. The Housing Department uses HUD's FY26 income guidelines for the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy area, effective June 1, 2026.

HUD and the city update these limits each year, and you can also check your numbers with the Housing Department's online Housing Program Eligibility Tool.

Which Programs Your Income Opens

• Up to 80% AMI: You can apply for Cambridge's $10,000 Down Payment Assistance, the ONE Mortgage interest subsidy, and the Resale Pool (starting at 50% AMI). Current Cambridge residents at 60% AMI or more can also apply for HomeBridge, and MassHousing's $30,000 Workforce Advantage DPA uses Cambridge limits that match the 60% column.
• Above 80% up to 100% AMI: You fit the Homeownership Resale Pool, HomeBridge if you are a current Cambridge resident, the standard ONE Mortgage, and MassHousing's amortizing DPA.
• Above 100% up to 120% AMI: HomeBridge remains open if you already live in Cambridge. Non-residents and buyers who do not want a deed restriction can look at MassHousing's amortizing DPA.
• Above 120% up to 135% AMI: City programs cap out at 120% AMI, though MassHousing's $25,000 amortizing DPA still reaches $209,250 across Middlesex County.

Cambridge Down Payment Assistance: Up to $10,000

Cambridge Down Payment Assistance gives income-eligible first-time buyers up to $10,000 toward their down payment and Massachusetts closing costs, and it works on either a market-rate listing or a deed-restricted affordable unit inside the city.

The assistance is a forgivable loan with no monthly payments. The city forgives 20% of the balance each year—up to $2,000 a year on the full $10,000—so the loan is completely forgiven after five years as long as the home remains your only and primary residence.

Who Qualifies

• First-time buyer: You must qualify as a first-time homebuyer.
• Homebuyer education: You must complete an approved first-time homebuyer workshop.
• Income limit: Household income must be at or below 80% of AMI ($96,000 for one person, $137,100 for four).
• Cambridge property: You must buy a single-family home, condominium, or two- or three-family home located in Cambridge.
• Demonstrated need: You must be unable to buy the home without assistance and must put all other available resources toward the purchase.
• Primary residence: You must live in the property as your primary residence.

How to Apply

If you are already applying for the Homeownership Resale Pool or a city housing lottery, Housing Department staff automatically pre-screen you for the $10,000 DPA. If you are shopping on the open market, reach out to the Housing Department directly at 617-349-4622 or homeownership@cambridgema.gov to be screened.

HomeBridge: The City Pays Up to 65% of the Price

HomeBridge lets current Cambridge residents earning 60% to 120% of AMI buy a condo or single-family home on the open market while the city funds a large share of the purchase price. In return, you sign the City's Affordable Housing Covenant at closing, so you trade future resale equity and residency flexibility for a price you can afford today.

How Your Price Is Set

The home must pass city property standards and sit within program price maximums. City staff calculate your maximum purchase price from your down payment and an affordable monthly payment, keeping total monthly housing cost (property taxes, homeowner's insurance, and any condo fee) between 30% and 33% of gross monthly income.

For example, a one-person household at the $72,000 HomeBridge income floor brings in $6,000 a month before taxes. At 30% to 33% of gross income, the city sizes the deal around a monthly housing payment of $1,800 to $1,980.

Who Qualifies

• Current Cambridge resident: You must live in Cambridge at the time you apply.
• First-time buyer: You must qualify as a first-time homebuyer.
• Income from 60% to 120% AMI: Total household income must fall between 60% and 120% of AMI for your household size.
• Recent CHAPA workshop: You must have completed a CHAPA-certified (Citizens' Housing and Planning Association) first-time homebuyer workshop within the last three years.
• Approved, deleaded property: You must buy a city-approved single-family home or condo in Cambridge, and all two- and three-bedroom units (plus any home for a household with children under 6) must be deleaded.
• 30-year fixed mortgage: You must get a 30-year conventional fixed-rate mortgage and qualify with your lender for at least 90% of the HomeBridge maximum price.
• Asset contribution: You need savings for your down payment and closing costs, and you must contribute liquid assets above $50,000 (or above $100,000 if all adults are 62 or older or disabled).
• Affordable Housing Covenant: You must sign the City's Affordable Housing Covenant at closing, which sets resale, limited equity, and residency rules.

How to Apply

The city takes rolling applications through its online OpenGov portal (or on paper by request) and recommends attending a HomeBridge information session first. Approved buyers get a city preapproval letter to pair with their lender's preapproval when making offers; contact homeownership@cambridgema.gov or 617-349-4622 with questions.

The Resale Pool and New-Unit Lotteries

Cambridge oversees more than 500 deed-restricted affordable homeownership units across the city (alongside limited equity cooperatives, which select shareholders under their own by-laws). When an owner sells one of those homes, the next buyer comes from the city's Homeownership Resale Pool.

Newly built affordable units are not sold through the Resale Pool and instead run separate project lotteries, so buyers who want a below-market home should sign up for both.

How the Resale Pool Works

• Who fits: Households earning 50% to 100% of AMI qualify, and homes are priced so total monthly housing costs generally stay at or under 30% of gross income.
• How to enter: Submit a rolling application by mail or at the city's 344 Broadway drop box.
• Preferences and bedroom rules: Cambridge residents and households with children get priority. Staff group applicants by unit size in application order (adults in a relationship share a bedroom, with up to two people per bedroom).
• When a home comes up: Staff send matching applicants a video tour link and request updated documents and a mortgage preapproval. The top-ranked eligible household tours, signs a Letter of Intent, pays a deposit, and gets conventional bank financing.
• Deed restrictions: Like HomeBridge buyers, Resale Pool buyers sign the City's Affordable Housing Covenant at closing.

You can reach the Cambridge Homeownership Team at 617-349-4643 or homeownership@cambridgema.gov. For a closer look at how deed-restricted pricing and resale formulas work across Massachusetts, see our guide to Chapter 40B Affordable Homes in Massachusetts.

New-Construction Lotteries

When a developer finishes new affordable condos in Cambridge, each project runs its own application and housing lottery rather than pulling from the Resale Pool. Sign up for the City of Cambridge's lottery notification list so you catch new buildings as they open, and review how lenders underwrite condo associations in our guide to Condo Loans in Massachusetts.

Check Your Massachusetts Home Purchase Eligibility

Take the Free Homebuyer Workshop Early

Cambridge's $10,000 DPA, HomeBridge (which requires a CHAPA-certified class within the last three years), and statewide MassHousing and ONE Mortgage loans all require homebuyer education. As of October 28, 2026, the city's free November 2026 workshop is full and the next Zoom session runs in January 2027, with registration posting no later than December 11, 2026.

If you want to buy before January, you can take any other CHAPA-approved workshop statewide through CHAPA or MyMassHome. If you take the city's class, here is how it works:

• Format: Four two-hour online sessions on Zoom, open to both Cambridge residents and non-residents.
• Attendance rule: You must attend all four sessions for your certificate; you can make up one missed session with permission, while missing two or more means retaking the course.
• What it covers: Budgeting and credit, searching for a home, getting a mortgage, legal issues, home inspections, insurance, long-term homeownership, and financial assistance programs.
• Free 1-on-1 counseling: Cambridge residents who finish the workshop can book free one-on-one pre-purchase counseling with the city's Homebuyer Coordinator at 617-349-4643 or homeownership@cambridgema.gov.
• Other city classes: The city also runs a Homebuyer 201 post-purchase class several times a year, plus sessions on credit, budgeting, and condo ownership.

Statewide Help That Works in Cambridge

The City of Cambridge does not recommend specific mortgage lenders and points buyers toward statewide options like the ONE Mortgage alongside conventional bank loans.

You apply for MassHousing, ONE Mortgage, and city programs through participating lenders. Next Wave Mortgage is not a participating lender for those programs, though our team can check your eligibility, compare loans across multiple wholesale lenders, and get you pre-approved first.

Why ONE+ Isn't an Option Here

The Massachusetts Housing Partnership's (MHP) ONE+ program adds a rate discount and up to $50,000 in down payment and closing cost help (figure from partner the Boston Foundation; confirm with a participating ONE+ lender). However, ONE+ is limited to current residents of 29 designated Massachusetts communities, and Cambridge is not on that list.

MHP ONE Mortgage

Cambridge buyers can still use the standard ONE Mortgage Program in Massachusetts through participating lenders:

• Down payment: 30-year fixed-rate loan with 3% down on a condo, single-family, or two-family home (at least 1.5% from your own funds), or 5% down on a three-family home (at least 3% from your own funds).
• No PMI or points: A publicly funded loan loss reserve replaces Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI), and lenders cannot charge discount points.
• Interest subsidy: At or under 80% AMI ($96,000 for one person, $137,100 for four in Cambridge) on a single-family, condo, or two-family home, a publicly funded subsidy lowers payments in years 1–4 and phases out in years 5–8.
• 2026 income limits: MHP's May 2026 100% AMI caps in Cambridge are higher than the city's HUD table: $120,000 (1 person), $137,150 (2), $154,300 (3), and $171,400 (4), scaling up to $226,250 for 8.
• Credit score: Minimum 640 for a single-family home or condo and 660 for a two- or three-family home, with nontraditional credit allowed.

Household assets cannot exceed $100,000 under MHP's November 2024 guidelines, excluding retirement accounts, college savings plans, and qualifying municipal DPA. Because an older line on MHP's calculator page still lists $75,000, confirm the current cap with a participating lender.

MassHousing Down Payment Assistance

MassHousing Down Payment Assistance works statewide, including in Cambridge, when paired with a MassHousing first mortgage through an approved lender. It serves first-time buyers (no ownership in a principal residence in the past three years) with a 640+ credit score on 1- to 4-family homes or condos, and can combine with many local programs.

• Workforce Advantage DPA (up to $30,000): A 0% deferred second mortgage with no monthly payments, due only when you sell, refinance, or pay off the first mortgage.
• Amortizing DPA (up to $25,000): A fixed-rate, 15-year second mortgage with monthly payments, priced in a lower rate tier up to 80% AMI and a slightly higher tier above 80% up to 135% AMI.

In Cambridge, current published Workforce Advantage income limits (effective June 15, 2026) are $72,000 for one person, $82,320 for two, $92,580 for three, and $102,840 for four. Across Middlesex County, the amortizing DPA reaches $124,000 at 80% AMI and $209,250 at 135% AMI.

MassHousing's temporary spring 2026 "Expanded First Time Homebuyer Assistance" 0% offer on the $25,000 tier stopped taking rate locks after July 2, 2026.

To see how state and municipal programs stack across the Commonwealth, read our guide to Massachusetts First-Time Homebuyer Grants and Programs and test your monthly budget in our Home Affordability Calculator.

How to Apply, Step by Step

Lining up these steps in order keeps you from missing a lottery notice or finding a home before your subsidy paperwork and class certificate are ready.

1. Match your income to the table above. Check your gross household income against the income table above and MHP's limits to see which city and state programs fit your household size.
2. Book your homebuyer class first. Because Cambridge's November 2026 Zoom workshop is already full ahead of the January 2027 session, grab a seat in January or take another CHAPA-approved class right away.
3. Get into the city pools. Drop off or mail your Resale Pool application to 344 Broadway, join the city's lottery notification list, and if you already live in Cambridge, apply for HomeBridge through the OpenGov portal.
4. Get pre-approved for your first mortgage. You need a lender pre-approval to tour a Resale Pool home or pair with a HomeBridge preapproval letter; an eligibility check with our team uses no hard credit pull and usually wraps up in 1 to 3 business days once your documents are in.

Our team at Make Massachusetts Your Home (operated by Next Wave Mortgage, LLC) can check your purchasing power, compare conventional, FHA, VA, and jumbo loans across multiple wholesale lenders, and get you pre-approved. You can also schedule a free 15-minute call with a loan officer to walk through your numbers.

Check Your Massachusetts Home Purchase Eligibility