down payment help

How does TDHCA's My First Texas Home program work, and what about My Choice Texas Home?

QUICK SUMMARY

My First Texas Home is the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) program for first-time buyers. It pairs a 30-year fixed FHA, VA or USDA loan with down payment assistance of 2% to 5% of the loan amount. My Choice Texas Home is the version without the first-time buyer requirement, and it also works with certain conventional loans. We can offer all of TDHCA's programs and assistance structures where TDHCA's current guidelines allow them for your loan.

Who counts as a first-time buyer

For My First Texas Home, a first-time buyer is someone who hasn't owned and lived in a primary residence in the last three years. TDHCA waives that requirement for qualified veterans (with a DD-214) and for homes in targeted census tracts (TDHCA My First Texas Home matrix, published Aug 17, 2026).

Fort Worth area limits

TDHCA groups Johnson, Parker and Tarrant counties together as the Fort Worth-Arlington area. Limits effective July 13, 2026 (TDHCA limits):

Income, household of 1 to 2. Non-targeted area: $110,300. Targeted area: $132,360.
Income, household of 3 or more. Non-targeted area: $126,845. Targeted area: $154,420.
Purchase price, 1 unit. Non-targeted area: $589,596. Targeted area: $720,617.

My Choice Texas Home uses different income limits by loan type. For FHA, VA and USDA it's $187,510 in this area. For conventional HFA loans, it's $94,000 for the option at or below 80% of area income and $199,750 for the over-80% option. Check TDHCA's chart for your situation.

Who counts toward the limit matters too. For My First Texas Home and the Texas MCC, TDHCA counts everyone who signs the deed of trust, including a non-purchasing spouse. For My Choice Texas Home, only the borrowers' qualifying income counts (TDHCA Lender Guide).

How the assistance is structured

TDHCA's assistance is up to 5% of the first mortgage amount (the My First Texas Home matrix shows 2% to 5%), funding permitting, as one of two 0% second liens with no monthly payment (TDHCA matrix):

30-year deferred repayable second lien: due when you sell, refinance, transfer or pay off the first mortgage, or stop living there as your primary residence.
3-year deferred forgivable second lien: forgiven on the third anniversary if you're current on your first mortgage and still live there as your primary residence. Before then, it's due if you sell, refinance, transfer or pay off the first mortgage.

My First Texas Home also has a no-assistance option, which is just the program's first mortgage. That option can't be combined with an MCC.

The Texas Mortgage Credit Certificate is a federal tax credit on part of the mortgage interest you pay each year. It's for first-time buyers, qualified veterans and homes in targeted areas, and it comes as a standalone certificate or combined with TDHCA's assistance. TDHCA notes MCC supply is limited, and the credit only helps in a year you owe federal income tax. Talk with a tax professional about how it would work for you.

All of these are available through us where TDHCA's current guidelines allow them for your loan. Your eligibility, the program's current funding, and the rules for the option you pick still have to check out, and I'll confirm those with you up front.

Program rules worth knowing

These are TDHCA's rules for the program, on top of the rules for the loan itself:

Minimum middle credit score of 620.
Debt-to-income follows the automated underwriting findings. Manually underwritten FHA, VA and USDA files are capped at 45%. Conventional files can't be manually underwritten.
FHA 203(k) renovation loans can't be used with any TDHCA program.
HUD-certified homebuyer education for every borrower.
A Texas residency affidavit.
No cash back at closing, including from gift funds.

The FHA, VA or USDA rules still apply, and so does underwriting approval. TDHCA's master servicer can also apply its own requirements, which TDHCA calls overlays. See FHA credit score requirements and debt-to-income.

How to apply

Take TDHCA's Eligibility Quick Check on welcomehome.tdhca.texas.gov or start with a TDHCA-approved loan officer.
Complete homebuyer education.
Shop with your agent within the price limit.
Your lender reserves the loan, and the MCC if you're using one, in TDHCA's lender system, then closes the loan.

Fictional example

This example is made up to show how the rules apply.

Jordan and Priya are renting in Fort Worth, have never owned a home, and earn a combined amount under the $126,845 limit for a household of three. They're looking at FHA homes under the purchase price limit. With middle scores of 640 and 668, they clear the 620 program floor. They'd compare the repayable and forgivable assistance options with their lender. Their loan still has to be approved, and the assistance only covers what the program allows.

What to do next

Check the three-year ownership test, or whether you qualify for the veteran or targeted-area waiver.
Add up household income for everyone who'll be on the loan.
Ask which TDHCA assistance form fits your plans. The forgivable and repayable seconds work differently if you might sell or refinance in the first few years.

Next step

First home in Texas? Let me check whether TDHCA fits before you start shopping. Book a call

Sources

Links checked Oct 19, 2026.

TDHCA Texas Homebuyer Program: https://welcomehome.tdhca.texas.gov/ and https://welcomehome.tdhca.texas.gov/programs
My First Texas Home program matrix (published Aug 17, 2026): https://welcomehome.tdhca.texas.gov/uploads/My-First-Texas-Home-Program-Matrix-TMS.pdf
Income and purchase price limits (effective July 13, 2026): https://welcomehome.tdhca.texas.gov/uploads/Limits.pdf
TDHCA Lender Guide (effective Aug 26, 2026), Sections 1.8, 3.1, 3.3, 3.6, 3.7: https://welcomehome.tdhca.texas.gov/uploads/Lender-Guide.pdf

About the author: McKade Lively, NMLS 2704474, American Pacific Mortgage Corporation dba True North Home Loans, NMLS 1850.

Equal Housing Opportunity.

Last reviewed: Oct 2026