Sometimes the opportunity to buy a home in Taos starts with a conversation.
A landlord decides to sell and gives a longtime tenant the first chance to buy at a favorable price. A relative offers to sell a house to a family member for less than it might bring on the open market. Friends agree on a price that makes homeownership possible because keeping someone in the community matters to them. These opportunities reflect something valuable about Taos: people finding ways to help one another stay. But even when a seller is willing and a buyer is interested, the numbers do not always come together.
For Taos Housing Partnership, helping community members understand those numbers—and what steps they can take toward homeownership—is part of the work happening now. THP offers homebuyer purchase advising to help people understand the process, explore what they may be able to afford, and identify what they need to prepare.
Those conversations also help explain why downpayment and closing cost assistance can be an important tool for communities like ours. THP is exploring how assistance could support local buyers. The challenges buyers face are not all the same. Some people can manage a monthly mortgage payment but have not saved enough to cover the downpayment and closing costs. Others have savings, but the amount they can borrow falls short of the purchase price. Even a discounted sale between family members or a landlord and tenant can leave a gap.
Downpayment assistance can help address either challenge. It can reduce the cash needed at closing or lower the amount a buyer needs to borrow through a primary mortgage. One way communities provide that assistance is through a second mortgage.
A second mortgage? Most people are already working hard to qualify for one. Why would they want another?
In an affordable homeownership program, the second mortgage can make the first one more manageable. Often called a “soft second,” this assistance is a separate loan secured by the home. Some programs can charge no interest and require no monthly payments, with repayment due when the homeowner sells or refinances.
The buyer still owes the assistance, but borrowing less through the primary mortgage can reduce monthly payments and the interest paid over time. When mortgage rates stretch household budgets, that can make a meaningful difference. Assistance toward closing costs can also help buyers overcome the upfront expense of completing a purchase.
The terms matter. Not every assistance loan works the same way, and buyers need to understand when repayment is required, whether interest accrues, and what happens when they sell or refinance. In programs that reuse repayments, the money can return to help another household buy a home.
For Taos, the appeal is flexibility. Assistance can be designed to support eligible buyers (often households with income at or below 150% of area median income) purchasing an eligible home they choose, including opportunities that arise through family, friendship, or an existing rental. It can complement the ways community members already help one another achieve homeownership.
Financial assistance is only one part of the picture. Understanding mortgage options, preparing financially, and knowing which questions to ask are important whether a purchase is months or years away. Those are conversations people can have with THP today. Homebuyer purchase advising can help you understand where you are in the process, what may be within reach, and what steps could help you move forward.
Community members are at the center of this work. Your questions and experiences help THP understand the obstacles people face and shape its work in response. If you have an opportunity to buy, wonder what you can afford, or simply want to know where to begin, reach out to THP for a Homebuyer Checkup. You do not need everything figured out beforehand. We are here to listen, share resources, and help you take the next step toward homeownership.