What Florida Assist is
On its Homebuyer overview page, Florida Housing describes FL Assist as down payment and closing-cost assistance of up to $10,000 on FHA, VA, USDA and conventional loans. It is a 0%, non-amortizing, deferred second mortgage. Florida Housing states that FL Assist is not forgivable. Repayment is deferred except in the event of a sale, transfer, satisfaction of the first mortgage, refinancing, or if the borrower no longer occupies the property, at which point the assistance becomes due in full.
It is not standalone assistance
Florida Housing states that down payment assistance is only available when used with a Florida Housing first mortgage loan. It is not offered as standalone down payment assistance. You also work with an approved, participating program lender.
Other first-time buyer rules Florida Housing lists
On the same overview page, Florida Housing lists requirements for its Homebuyer Loan Program, which is the first-mortgage path used with this assistance. Those include a minimum credit score of 640, completion of approved homebuyer education, a purchase price below the limit for the county, income below the limit for the county, and meeting the IRS definition of a first-time homebuyer (you cannot have owned and occupied your primary residence during the last three years before the purchase).
County income and purchase-price limits change. This page does not list a Miami-Dade figure that we could not independently confirm from the official table on November 10, 2026. Confirm the current county limits on Florida Housing’s official materials.
Related Florida Housing assistance
The same official overview also describes other second-mortgage options, including the Florida Homeownership Loan Program (FL HLP) second mortgage of $12,500 at 3%, fully amortizing over 30 years, and 3%, 4% or 5% HFA Preferred and HFA Advantage PLUS second mortgages that can be forgiven over a five-year term when used with certain conventional Florida Housing first mortgages. Which option, if any, may apply depends on the first mortgage product and on eligibility.
How we can help
David Mieres, Mortgage Lender, NMLS #2857980, with LoanWorks Financial, NMLS #2791803, can walk through whether a Florida Housing first mortgage and a program such as FL Assist may be relevant, subject to credit approval and to Florida Housing’s rules. Official eligibility is decided by the program, not by this website.
Source: Florida Housing Finance Corporation, Homebuyer overview, reviewed November 10, 2026. Confirm current rules at floridahousing.org. This page is not an offer or a promise of approval.