First-time home buyer programs in Delaware

What the state program offers

DSHA, the state’s housing finance agency, offers two first mortgages through participating lenders. The qualifications are nearly identical; the difference is whether you must be a first-time buyer.

• Welcome Home is for first-time homebuyers.
• Open Door is open to first-time and repeat buyers.

For both, DSHA’s website posts a minimum credit score of 620. Applicants with a score of 659 or below must take part in housing counseling. Income and sales price limits apply. DSHA says it works with conventional, FHA, VA and USDA loans.

Down payment assistance: amounts and conditions

Each program pairs the first mortgage with a choice of assistance, as posted on DSHA’s homeownership loans page:

Source: Delaware State Housing Authority, Homeownership Loans, read October 13, 2026.

The second mortgage carries zero interest and has no monthly payment. Payment is deferred until the first of these events: refinance, sale of the home, transfer of title, or the property no longer being your primary residence.

A worked example

This is an illustration, not an offer. Suppose your first mortgage is $300,000. The assistance would be:

• First State Home Loan (3%): $9,000
• Keys4You Home Loan (4%): $12,000
• Take5 Home Loan (5%): $15,000

The assistance is a loan, not a grant. Because it is deferred, the amount comes due when one of the events above occurs. Ask your lender how it affects your closing costs and your payoff when you sell.

Income and price limits

DSHA posts limits by county and household size. They apply to the county where you buy. These are the figures on DSHA’s site on October 13, 2026; DSHA does not show an effective date on the page, so confirm them with a lender before you make an offer.

Source: Delaware State Housing Authority, Homeownership Loans, read October 13, 2026. Kent and Sussex counties share lower limits (for example, Welcome Home: $111,400 for 1 or 2 persons, $128,110 for 3 or more).

Targeted areas are specific census tracts where DSHA allows higher income and price limits and more flexible requirements. In New Castle County, DSHA lists tracts 0006.02, 0019.02, 0021.00, 0023.00, 0029.00 and 0030.02. DSHA points buyers to the FFIEC Geocoding and Mapping System to check an address.

To compare the price limit with local prices, see Delaware home prices: the 2024 Census median value in Wilmington is $245,100.

Programs in Wilmington

A Wilmington home is in New Castle County, so the New Castle County limits above apply, and DSHA’s targeted-area tracts are listed by census tract. The City of Wilmington’s Department of Real Estate and Housing publishes its own homebuyer information. We could not open the city’s pages today (the site returned an access error), so this article does not state any city amount or limit. Ask the city, or a housing counselor, which city assistance is open and whether it can be combined with the DSHA second mortgage. Our page on buying a home in Wilmington will be updated when we can read the city’s terms.

How to apply

1. Start with a participating lender. DSHA lists participating lenders in a searchable directory on its website; a lender takes the application.
2. Check the rate. DSHA posts the interest rates for each product and says rates change regularly. The posted rates differ by program, product and loan type, and targeted areas have lower rates for Welcome Home. Look at the rate page on the day you apply.
3. Do the counseling if required. DSHA’s page lists eight housing counseling agencies, several with Wilmington offices. Counseling is required if your credit score is 659 or below.
4. Complete the purchase. DSHA’s steps are: loan officer, home search, mortgage, appraisal, closing. See our guide to the steps of buying a home.

DSHA reports that 1,593 Delaware families bought a home with its help in 2025, with $46.9 million in first mortgages and $11.9 million in down payment and closing cost assistance. You can reach the homeownership team at (302) 739-4263 or toll-free at (888) 363-8808.

For how the loan types differ, see our guides to FHA loans, VA loans and private mortgage insurance. Assistance can lower your cash at closing, but closing costs still apply; read closing costs in Delaware.