Strong Matches
Open programs where your town, buyer status, and basic loan details line up with published rules.
down payment assistancecalculatormassachusetts
Massachusetts Down Payment Assistance Calculator
Select your target Massachusetts town and household details to see which statewide, regional, and local down payment programs fit your purchase.
Check My Home Purchase Eligibility
Answer a few questions about your purchase. No hard credit pull to start.
Massachusetts DPA Finder
Find your Massachusetts DPA options.
Answer 3 quick questions. No contact info.
Question1 of 3
Where are you buying?
How It Works
How the calculator screens Massachusetts programs
You pick the Massachusetts city or town where you want to buy, and the county fills in automatically. After you enter your buyer status, household size, income, target price, credit range, and loan type, the tool checks 79 active programs across the state.
79
Active Massachusetts programs in our database
Closed programs like the MassDREAMS grant are removed from the tool. Paused, waitlisted, and lottery-based programs stay in the database and are labeled so you know their current status.
What the calculator checks
Target Massachusetts city or town
First-time homebuyer status
Household income and size
Target purchase price limits
Credit score range and loan type
Profession and household qualifiers
Programs with unconfirmed 2026 funding, neighborhood street boundaries, or conflicting city rules are placed in a manual review group so you know to verify them before making an offer.
Possible Matches
Programs that fit your location but depend on lender enrollment, project lotteries, or specific property types.
Manual Review
Programs where annual funding caps, exact street boundaries, or income limits must be confirmed with the administrator or a participating lender.
Status Labels
Clear tags showing whether a program is open, paused, waitlisted, or run by public lottery.
What We Screen
Why your town, loan type, and timing matter
Massachusetts assistance is not a single state fund. You might combine a statewide mortgage with a local grant, or choose between a deferred 0% loan and an amortizing second mortgage.
The calculator filters by loan type and profession because rules clash. For example, Lowell's LDFC loan does not allow FHA loans, while MassHousing offers a $2,500 closing credit for veterans and service members and HUD offers 50% off list prices in revitalization areas through Good Neighbor Next Door.
This tool is a screening step, not a loan approval, and it does not calculate exact area median income limits for every town. Buyers apply for MassHousing, ONE Mortgage, and city programs through participating lenders; our team helps you review Massachusetts homebuying requirements, compare loan options, and check your home purchase eligibility before you shop. Next Wave Mortgage, LLC is a mortgage broker and is not a participating program lender.
- Whether a town program is open, paused, or waitlisted
- Purchase price caps set by HUD or local housing trusts
- Whether you must apply before or after signing a purchase agreement
- Minimum buyer contribution from your own savings (often 1% to 3%)
- First mortgage rules, such as fixed-rate or conventional-only requirements
- Residency rules, such as living in one of the 29 ONE+ communities
Estimate Your Budget
See how purchase price, property taxes, and down payment size affect your monthly mortgage payment. Run your numbers before comparing assistance options.
Use the Affordability Calculator →Plan for Closing Costs
Many local programs help with upfront settlement fees as well as your down payment. Learn what buyers typically pay at the closing table in Massachusetts.
See Massachusetts Closing Costs →Compare Conventional Loans
Several city and state programs require a fixed-rate conventional first mortgage. Check the credit and down payment rules for standard financing.
Read the Conventional Loan Guide →Local Programs
How city and regional assistance works
Every Massachusetts town has access to statewide programs, so the town counts in the calculator always include statewide options alongside local funds. On top of those, many cities and regional HOME consortia run their own forgivable or deferred loans.
In Greater Boston, the Boston First-Time Homebuyer Program offers up to $50,000 in financial assistance, while current Boston residents buying in the city can pair a discounted rate with city funds through ONE+Boston. Across the river, Cambridge buyers can apply for up to $10,000 in forgivable Down Payment Assistance or use the HomeBridge shared-equity program for up to 65% of the purchase price.
Outside the core cities, regional consortia pool federal funds across neighboring towns. The South Shore HOME Consortium covers Braintree, Quincy, Randolph, and Weymouth with a 0% deferred loan up to the lesser of 9% or $40,000, and the North Suburban Consortium offers up to $10,000 across eight communities north of Boston, both capped at an $858,000 purchase price.
In Central and Western Massachusetts, the Worcester Down Payment Assistance Program provides a conditional grant up to $5,000 on homes needing no more than $10,000 in repairs, though applicants must apply at least 45 days before closing. The Springfield Down Payment and Closing Cost Assistance Program offers a 0% forgivable loan of $7,500 to $20,000 on 1- to 4-unit homes, while nearby Easthampton offers a $50,000 mortgage subsidy through Valley CDC.
Programs in the calculator by county
Middlesex County27
Suffolk County27
Essex County24
Plymouth County21
Berkshire County20
Norfolk County20
Barnstable County19
Bristol County19
Hampden County19
Dukes County17
Hampshire County17
Nantucket County17
Worcester County17
Franklin County16
Open the interactive map
Click any of the 351 cities and towns to see its local programs.
Why town and neighborhood lines matter
Local rules often stop at a street or ZIP code line. In Boston, the Community Stabilization Fund offers up to 10% of the purchase price only in five specific ZIP codes (02115, 02118, 02119, 02120, and 02215), and Haverhill limits its $15,000 forgivable loan to selected streets in the Mount Washington and Lower Acre neighborhoods.
Residency before you buy can also change what you get. MHP's ONE+ program gives up to $50,000 in assistance, but only to current residents of 29 participating communities, while rural addresses in western and central towns may qualify for 100% financing through USDA loans in Massachusetts.
Statewide Options
Statewide mortgages, grants, and affordable homes
Regardless of which town you choose, the calculator checks statewide mortgages, bank grants, and deed-restricted home lotteries. These form the baseline for most Massachusetts first-time buyers.
Statewide
MassHousing Workforce Advantage 4.0 ($30,000 DPA)
$30,000 at 0%, deferred
0% deferred loan
Statewide
MassHousing Down Payment Assistance ($25,000, 15-year)
$25,000 second mortgage
Amortizing second mortgage
Statewide
ONE Mortgage Program (MHP)
3% down, no PMI
First mortgage
Statewide
FHLBank Boston Equity Builder Program
Up to $32,099 grant
Grant (5-year retention)
MassHousing Mortgages and DPA
A MassHousing Mortgage finances up to 97% on 1- to 4-unit primary residences and includes MI Plus job-loss protection of up to $4,000 a month for six months. Qualifying buyers can pair it with MassHousing Down Payment Assistance: either the Workforce Advantage 4.0 loan offering $30,000 at 0% deferred, or a $25,000 15-year amortizing second mortgage.
MHP ONE Mortgage and ONE+
The Massachusetts Housing Partnership's ONE Mortgage Program offers a below-market fixed rate with 3% down and no private mortgage insurance on condos and 1- to 3-family homes. Current residents of 29 gateway and urban communities may qualify for ONE+, which adds up to $50,000 in assistance through participating lenders.
FHLBank Boston Grants and Lotteries
Through enrolled member lenders, FHLBank Boston offers first-come, first-served grants with a 5-year retention period: up to $32,099 from the Equity Builder Program and up to $25,000 from Housing Our Workforce, which can stack with MassHousing DPA. Buyers open to resale limits can also apply for below-market homes through Chapter 40B lotteries, CommonWealth Builder, or the Massachusetts Homeownership Tax Credit pipeline.
Massachusetts DPA Calculator Questions
The calculator narrows your Massachusetts options. A participating lender or the program confirms final eligibility.
Talk to an ExpertNo, the calculator is an educational screening tool that matches your answers against published program rules. It does not pull your credit, verify your tax returns, or reserve grant funds. To apply for a program, you must get pre-approved through a participating lender or local housing agency.
The tool checks the Massachusetts city or town where you plan to buy, your county, whether you are a first-time buyer, and any household or profession qualifiers you select. It also filters by your household size, annual income, target purchase price, credit score range, and preferred loan type.
Most city and state programs require you to be a first-time buyer, which usually means you have not owned a home in the past three years. However, some options—such as USDA rural loans, HUD Good Neighbor Next Door, and certain Nantucket year-round deed programs—do not require first-time status, though borrowers generally cannot own other real property at closing.
Yes, many Massachusetts programs allow funds to go toward both down payment and closing costs, and a few are built specifically for settlement fees. For example, Somerville offers up to $5,000 through its Closing Cost 80 and 110 loans, Nantucket offers up to $15,000 for deed-restricted buyers, and MassHousing provides a $2,500 closing cost credit for veterans and service members.
A program lands in manual review when a rule cannot be confirmed from a simple form, such as street-by-street neighborhood boundaries in Haverhill or first-come, first-served funding caps in FHLBank Boston grants. It also flags programs where city web pages show older guideline dates or where exact area median income limits must be calculated by a lender.
In many cases, yes. MassHousing allows both its $30,000 Workforce Advantage loan and its $25,000 amortizing DPA to be combined with FHLBank Boston's Equity Builder grant and many municipal programs, and Boston allows its First-Time Homebuyer Program to stack with ONE+Boston. However, some local programs cannot be combined with one another, such as Revere's $10,000 DPA and its Affordable Homeownership Buydown Program.
Statewide loans and grants typically range from $25,000 to $32,099 through MassHousing and FHLBank Boston, and up to $50,000 through ONE+. Local assistance ranges from $5,000 in towns like Worcester, Somerville, and Belchertown to $50,000 in Boston, Wellfleet, and Easthampton, while shared-equity buydowns in Cambridge, Revere, and Leverett can cover $60,000 to $200,000 or up to 65% of the price in exchange for a permanent deed restriction.
Yes, the database includes 79 current programs covering statewide agencies, federal loans, regional HOME consortia, local Habitat for Humanity chapters, and individual city and town housing trusts. When you pick a town, you see both the local programs for that community and the statewide options available everywhere in Massachusetts.
Want to find out your buying power in Massachusetts?
Get pre-approved first. Our team reviews loans from several lenders and includes any eligible assistance for your home purchase.