NACA Mortgage Program in 2026: No Down Payment, No Closing Costs, Below-Market Rate

NACA, the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America, operates a mortgage program that is unlike anything else in the market. No down payment. No closing costs. No PMI. Below-market interest rate. No minimum credit score. For the right borrower, the terms are genuinely exceptional. But the process is demanding and the timeline is long.

Core Program Terms

• ✦No down payment requirement
• ✦No closing costs charged to the borrower
• ✦No PMI regardless of LTV
• ✦Below-market interest rate negotiated in bulk with Bank of America
• ✦No minimum FICO score; credit is evaluated on payment behavior and history, not score
• ✦Primary residence only; no investment properties or second homes

Who Qualifies

Borrowers must have income at or below the area median income for the county of purchase, or they must be purchasing in a low-to-moderate income census tract at any income level. NACA requires attendance at their workshops and multiple counseling sessions. Participants must demonstrate the ability to save by showing consistent savings behavior over time. All outstanding debt and derogatory history must be addressed through the NACA counseling process before qualification.

The NACA Process

The NACA process involves multiple steps: intake, financial counseling, financial review and qualification, purchase workshop, Member Assistance support during the home search, and closing. The full process typically takes three to twelve months depending on the borrower's financial readiness when they enter. Borrowers who enter with clean finances and manageable issues move faster. Those with complex derogatory history may take significantly longer.

What This Means for MLOs

MLOs cannot originate NACA loans. The program is direct-to-consumer through NACA offices and the NACA website. However, NACA is a legitimate referral for borrowers who are not ready for traditional mortgage qualification and need the counseling component to build financial readiness. Borrowers who complete the NACA process and later want to refinance or purchase a second property enter the traditional mortgage market at that point.