You can make more than $225,000 and qualify for home-buying help in California.
Now, that's just San Francisco County, but, statewide, anyone who makes at least six figures can qualify for a California Housing Finance Agency loan that helps with everything from down payments to closing costs.
"With fast-rising home prices and incomes not keeping pace in much of the state — especially the Bay Area and Southern California — buying a home has become extremely difficult," said CalHFA spokeswoman Kathy Phillips. "The increase was made after performing a thorough assessment of the market and health and safety codes that authorize us to do so."
Dean Hiatt is executive chef at Poor Red's Bar-B-Q in El Dorado. He commutes from Nevada and is looking for a home in Placerville. It wouldn't be possible without the state's program.
"It's kind of the only way to do it anymore in California," Hiatt said.
In Sacramento County, you can make more than $150,000 and still qualify for a CalHFA loan. That's also the case in El Dorado County, where Hiatt is looking. Take a look at the income limits by county below: