Michigan down payment assistance, compared honestly
7 programs, from $4,500 to $25,000 — 5 never repaid, 2 repaid in full when you sell. Programs we cannot originate are listed anyway, including where they beat ours: a comparison that never concedes is not one you can trust.
Check your numbers against all 7
All 7 programs side by side
| Program | Provider | Amount | Repayment | Credit floor | Closes via |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DPA Advantage | eLEND | 2%/3.5% of price | Never repaid | 620 | ClosingReady |
| FHA $100 Down | eLEND | 3.5% down -> $100 | Never repaid | — | ClosingReady |
| Purchase Plus | Rocket Mortgage | $4,500 + 1% of loan | Never repaid | — | ClosingReady |
| ONE+ | Rocket Mortgage | 2% of price, max $7,000 | Never repaid | — | ClosingReady |
| Detroit Down Payment Assistance | City of Detroit | $25,000 | Never repaid | — | Confirm participation before relying on it |
| MI 10K DPA Loan | MSHDA | $10,000 | Repaid at sale | 640 | Referred out |
| First-Generation DPA | MSHDA | $25,000 | Repaid at sale | 640 | Referred out |
Amounts are maximums, not quotes. Every program page lists what its issuer has not yet confirmed — those unknowns are printed, not assumed away.
Eligibility is nearly universal — until prices outrun the caps
Of the 35,607 Southeast Michigan sales evaluated by Down Payment Resource in the last 12 months, 96.3% were flagged as potentially matching at least one assistance program. In most communities the answer to "are DPA-eligible homes available here" is simply yes. Where it stops being yes is where prices exceed program caps:
| City | County | Flagged eligible | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham | Oakland | 52% | 161 of 308 |
| Bloomfield Township | Oakland | 63% | 85 of 134 |
| Oakland Township | Oakland | 66% | 99 of 151 |
| Bloomfield Hills | Oakland | 69% | 259 of 376 |
| Northville Township | Wayne | 74% | 144 of 196 |
| Salem Township | Washtenaw | 75% | 27 of 36 |
| Addison Township | Oakland | 78% | 25 of 32 |
| Bruce Township | Macomb | 80% | 31 of 39 |
| Rochester | Oakland | 84% | 128 of 152 |
| Washington Township | Macomb | 85% | 120 of 141 |
| Milford Township | Oakland | 85% | 115 of 135 |
| Superior Township | Washtenaw | 88% | 51 of 58 |
Down Payment Resource's flag means a listing may match at least one of hundreds of national and local programs — an indicator, not a promise, and it says nothing about which program or your own eligibility. 65.4% of the window's 54,439 closed sales carried the flag either way; unevaluated sales are excluded from every percentage here. Realcomp closed sales, 12 months to 2026-08-26.
Common questions
Is down payment assistance free money?
Sometimes. Of the 7 programs here, 5 are never repaid (grants or reduced-down structures) and 2 are deferred loans repaid in full when you sell or refinance. A $10,000 loan you repay is different money from a $7,000 grant you keep — the table says which is which.
Do I have to be a first-time buyer to get assistance?
Mostly no. Only Rocket's Purchase Plus requires first-time status here. MSHDA's First-Generation DPA turns on whether your parents owned a home in the last 3 years — a different test many repeat renters pass.
Is the Detroit $25,000 program still available?
It is first-come, first-served against a fixed pot of federal funds, and it requires a signed purchase agreement plus lender pre-qualification to apply — so confirm funding remains before writing an offer that depends on it.
Can I combine down payment assistance with these calculators?
That is the point of this site: assistance covers the down payment, but the year-two uncapped tax bill and escrow jump arrive regardless. Run the uncapping and escrow calculators on the same house before you commit.
Assistance covers the down payment. The uncapped year-two tax bill and the escrow jump arrive regardless — run both on the same house.