More than 60 assistance programs exist for Georgia buyers. Most people have never heard of one.
Every program below is one of three things. Knowing which one you're being offered is the difference between free money and a second loan you forgot about.
Yours. You never pay it back. Rarest of the three — usually with a retention period, meaning you have to actually live there a few years.
A loan on paper that disappears if you stay long enough — typically 5 or 10 years. Move early and you repay a prorated share.
A real second loan at 0% with no monthly payment. You owe it in full when you sell or refinance. Still enormously useful — just know it's there.
Two things nearly everyone gets wrong. First — you usually can't stack unlimited programs; most lenders let you combine a state program with one local one, and that's it. Second — almost every program requires a HUD-approved homebuyer education course. It's 6–8 hours online, costs $75 or less, and you should start it before you find a house, not after. That single delay kills more deals than credit does.
Run by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. All 159 counties. Requires a participating lender and a 640 credit score.
Georgia DCA · Deferred
The baseline program and the one most Georgia buyers use. 0% interest, no monthly payment, repaid when you sell or refinance.
Georgia DCA · Deferred
Same program, more money, if you're a teacher, nurse, healthcare worker, firefighter, police officer, or active military. If this is you, never take the standard $10,000 by mistake — it happens constantly.
Georgia DCA · Deferred
For buyers with a disability, or families with a disabled household member. Same terms as PEN.
Georgia DCA · Deferred
The one almost nobody knows about. You do not have to be a first-time buyer, and the income ceiling is far higher — nearly $225,000 for a family of three. If you've owned before and assumed you were disqualified, read this line twice.
Georgia DCA · Deferred
A percentage rather than a flat dollar amount, which on a higher-priced home beats every flat program here. Conventional loans only.
Georgia DCA · Deferred
A discounted VA mortgage rate for veterans. Pair it with $0 down on the VA loan itself and the math gets very hard to beat.
The property must sit inside actual City of Atlanta limits — smaller than what people mean when they say "Atlanta." Sandy Springs, Brookhaven, and unincorporated Fulton do not count. Check before you fall in love with a house.
Atlanta Housing · Forgivable — 10 yrs
The largest single award in Metro Atlanta. $20,000 for most buyers, $25,000 if you're a public service employee. Forgiven entirely after ten years in the home.
Invest Atlanta · Forgivable — 5 yrs
Forgiven after just five years — half the commitment of the Atlanta Housing program. Two income tiers, and you do not have to be a first-time buyer.
Invest Atlanta · Forgivable — 5 yrs
Comes bundled with a 30-year fixed FHA or VA mortgage. Useful when you want the rate and the assistance handled in one package.
Invest Atlanta · Forgivable — 5–10 yrs
The lowest credit score on this entire page — 580. If your score is the thing standing in your way, start here. The trade-off is a $223,000 purchase price cap, which is tight but not impossible in parts of southwest Atlanta.
Invest Atlanta · Forgivable — 5 yrs
Geographically narrow — the home has to be inside the Perry Bolton Tax Allocation District on Atlanta's northwest side. $20,000 at 80% AMI, $10,000 at 120%. There's a $1,000 program fee.
Invest Atlanta · Deferred
Not forgivable — you repay this one. Worth taking only when nothing better fits, since several programs above give you double the money and forgive it.
Invest Atlanta · Forgivable — 5 yrs
Vine City only. Notably generous income limits — up to roughly $172,760 depending on household size — and no first-time buyer requirement. Renovation education required.
Invest Atlanta · Forgivable — 5 yrs
For buying a home that needs work, paired with a renovation loan. The overlooked path into neighborhoods where move-in-ready inventory has already priced out.
Where I do most of my business. County programs stack with Georgia Dream more often than city programs do — always worth asking.
Fulton County · Forgivable — 6–11 yrs
Second-largest award in the metro, and because it's a percentage it scales with the house. Covers Fulton County outside Atlanta city limits.
Cobb County · Grant / deferred
Percentage-based, no first-time buyer requirement, and county employees get an additional $10,000. Marietta, Smyrna, Kennesaw, Acworth, Powder Springs.
Decide DeKalb · True grant
A genuine grant — no repayment, no forgiveness clock, no lien. Smaller than the forgivable programs, but it's the cleanest money on this page.
DeKalb County · Deferred
Separate from WE DeKalb, and in many cases you can pursue both. Ask your lender to check.
Gwinnett County · Forgivable — 5 yrs
580 credit minimum makes this one of the most reachable county programs in the metro. Purchase price cap around $410,000.
DCHP · Deferred
0% interest, due when you sell. Ten-year owner-occupancy requirement — this is for people planting roots, not flipping.
DCHP · Shared appreciation
The largest dollar figure on this page — but read carefully. DCHP takes a proportional share of your appreciation when you sell. That's a real trade, not free money. Right for some buyers, wrong for others, and I'll tell you honestly which one you are.
City of Canton · Deferred
Cherokee County. Unusually high purchase price ceiling, so it reaches further up the market than most local programs.
Clayton County · Forgivable — 5–10 yrs
$10,000 standard, $15,000 for veterans and first responders.
These come through banks, credit unions, and nonprofits rather than governments — which means they're the ones your loan officer has to go looking for.
Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership · Grant
A grant, not a loan, covering the full 29-county Metro Atlanta MSA — the widest footprint of anything here. $17,500–$20,000 below 80% AMI, $15,000 for 80–120% AMI.
ANDP · Grant
Delivered as a seller contribution at closing on ANDP-owned properties. Stacks with VA financing.
ANDP · Grant
For buyers whose parents never owned a home. If that's your family's story, this exists specifically for you and almost nobody applies.
FHLBank Atlanta member banks · Grant
For teachers, veterans, first responders, healthcare and law enforcement. Applied for through a member bank — so which lender you choose determines whether you can even access it.
FHLBank Atlanta member banks · Grant
Annual set-aside funds. They open at the start of the cycle and get exhausted — timing matters more than eligibility with this one.
FHLBank Atlanta member banks · Grant
Built for people who earn too much for everything else and still can't cover a down payment. If you've been told you make too much to qualify for help, this is the program to ask about.
Delta Community CU · Grant
Georgia residents who become credit union members. Easy to overlook because it isn't a government program and never shows up on county websites.
CBC Mortgage Agency · Deferred or repayable
Nationwide, FHA only, no income limit and no first-time buyer requirement — the fallback when every local program screens you out. Two versions: forgivable at 0%, or repayable at a slightly higher rate. Confirm which one you're being handed.
That depends on your county, your score, your household size, and whether you've owned before — and the right answer is usually a combination, not a single program. I'll be straight with you about what you don't qualify for, too.
Find my programs Call (404) 585-1231