Placer County's Down Payment Program Is Full: What Roseville Buyers Do Now

Is Placer County's First-Time Homebuyer Program Still Accepting Applications?

No. Placer County closed new applications for its First-Time Homebuyer Loan Program in 2026 after demand far outpaced the $2.6 million set aside for it — the county is now only accepting names for an interest list. If you were counting on that program, you still have options: CalHFA's MyHome Assistance Program, the GSFA Platinum Program, and California's Dream For All Shared Appreciation Loan are all active right now and available to buyers in Roseville, Rocklin, Lincoln, Loomis, and Granite Bay.

By Rich & Kat Farless | July 8, 2026

If you've been planning around Placer County's down payment assistance program, you probably found out the hard way that it's closed. The county's Housing Manager put it plainly: "we have far more applicants than we have funding." That's not a soft pause — it's a program that ran out of money and is now taking names for whenever (if) another funding round opens.

We've had more than one buyer come to us confused about this in the last few weeks, because the program was still showing up in search results and older blog posts as if it were open. It isn't. Here's what actually happened, and what to do instead if you still need help getting to the closing table.
Why Placer County's Program Filled Up So Fast
The math here isn't complicated. Placer County's First-Time Homebuyer Loan Program offered up to $100,000 in down payment assistance as a deferred second mortgage — a 3% interest rate, a 30-year term, and no payments due until you sell, refinance, or move out. Eligibility reached households earning up to 150% of area median income, which in a family of four meant an annual income limit around $181,200.

That's a genuinely useful program in a market where the median home price is well north of $600,000. The problem is the county only had about $2.6 million total to work with — enough to help somewhere between 10 and 20 households. In a market the size of Roseville and the surrounding unincorporated Placer County area, that funding was never going to stretch far.

Once word got out, applications came in faster than the county could process them, and the application window closed. If you missed it, you're now in the same position as everyone else who needs help with a down payment in this market: waiting on a program that may or may not reopen, with no announced timeline.

This is exactly the kind of situation where waiting isn't a strategy. If your plan depended entirely on this one program, it's time to build a backup plan — not wait around for a maybe.
What Actually Happens If You Join the Interest List
Joining Placer County's interest list is worth doing — it costs you nothing, and if the county opens another funding round, you'll get notified. But you shouldn't treat it as your down payment plan. There's no published timeline for a second round, and county housing programs like this one are funded through a patchwork of federal HOME Investment Partnership dollars, Community Development Block Grants, and the state's Permanent Local Housing Allocation — all of which depend on budget cycles outside anyone's control.

If you're planning to buy in the next six to twelve months, you need a plan that doesn't hinge on a program with no reopening date.
The State-Level Programs That Are Still Open
The good news: California runs several down payment assistance programs at the state level, and none of them are tied to Placer County's funding situation.

CalHFA MyHome Assistance Program gives eligible buyers up to 3.5% of the purchase price as a deferred "silent second" loan — no payments until you sell, refinance, or pay off the loan. It's typically paired with a CalHFA first mortgage and is one of the more straightforward programs to qualify for if you meet the income limits for your household size.

GSFA Platinum Program, run by the Golden State Finance Authority, layers down payment and closing cost assistance on top of a first mortgage for low-to-moderate income buyers. Placer County even has an Assist-to-Own resource page specifically pointing local buyers toward GSFA now that the county's own program is tapped out.

California Dream For All Shared Appreciation Loan is the biggest number on this list — up to 20% of your home's purchase price or appraised value, whichever is less, capped at $150,000. In exchange, the state shares in your home's appreciation when you eventually sell or refinance. CalHFA opened its third funding round for 2026 between late February and mid-March, selecting applicants through a randomized lottery, with roughly $150–200 million available statewide for around 2,000 households. If you registered during that window, check your status through the DFA Portal — the most recent batch of vouchers went out in May.

None of these require you to live in unincorporated Placer County the way the county program did, which means they work whether you're buying in Roseville proper, Rocklin, Lincoln, or out toward Loomis and Granite Bay.
How to Stack Assistance and Actually Get to the Table
Here's what we walk buyers through when the down payment is the sticking point:

Confirm your first-time buyer status. Most of these programs define "first-time buyer" as not having owned a home in the past three years — not literally never having owned one. If you sold a home in 2022 or earlier, you may still qualify. If you want the fuller checklist of what else to line up before closing, we cover it in our first-time buyer checklist for Rocklin and Placer County closings.
Talk to a lender who actively works these programs. Not every loan officer stays current on CalHFA, GSFA, and Dream For All guidelines, because they change fairly often. You want someone who can tell you today's income limits and loan-level pricing, not last year's.
Ask about stacking. In some cases, MyHome and GSFA-type assistance can be layered with your first mortgage to cover both down payment and closing costs — but the combined loan-to-value limits vary by program, so this needs to be checked with your lender before you write an offer.
Get your pre-approval locked before you shop, especially if you're considering new construction in West Roseville, where builders want to see financing sorted out before you even register at the model home. It's also worth comparing how a new construction payment stacks up against resale once you know what assistance you actually qualify for.
Build the assistance into your offer strategy, not after the fact. Sellers and builders want certainty. If your financing plan includes a second layer of assistance, your agent should be structuring the offer and timeline around that reality from day one — not scrambling to explain it during escrow.

Every household's numbers look different once you factor in income limits, loan program overlaps, and the specific home you're targeting. That's the conversation worth having before you start scheduling showings — not after you've fallen for a house you can't quite make the numbers work on.

If you already have a pre-approval in hand, it's worth reviewing what that pre-approval actually assumed about your down payment — small changes here can shift what you qualify for.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Placer County's First-Time Homebuyer Program actually offer?

The program offered up to $100,000 in down payment assistance as a deferred second mortgage at 3% interest, with no payments due for 30 years or until you sell, refinance, or move out. It's currently closed to new applications and only accepting names for an interest list.

Can I still apply for the Placer County program?

Not directly. The application window is closed and the program is at capacity, but you can join the county's interest list to be notified if a future funding round opens. There's no published date for when that might happen.

What's the difference between CalHFA MyHome and Dream For All?

MyHome offers up to 3.5% of the purchase price as a deferred loan with no ongoing payments. Dream For All offers up to 20% (capped at $150,000) but requires the state to share in your home's appreciation when you sell, and it's awarded through a lottery during specific funding windows rather than first-come, first-served.

Do I have to be a first-time buyer to use these programs?

Yes, but the definition is broader than most people expect. Most California down payment assistance programs define a first-time buyer as someone who hasn't owned a home in the past three years, not someone who has never owned one.

Can I combine down payment assistance with a new construction purchase in West Roseville?

In many cases, yes — but builders and lenders both need to sign off on the specific program before you write an offer. This is worth confirming early, especially in communities where builders also offer their own rate buydowns or closing cost credits, since some assistance programs have rules about stacking with builder incentives.

If you're trying to figure out which of these programs actually fits your situation — or whether it makes more sense to wait, save a little longer, or look at homes in a different price range — Rich & Kat can walk through the real numbers with you. Schedule a free consultation at richandkatsoldthat.com/talktous.

About Rich & Kat Farless Rich and Kat Farless are a husband-and-wife real estate team with over 30 years of combined experience serving buyers and sellers across the Sacramento region. As the #1 husband-and-wife team in Roseville, CA, they specialize in single family, new construction, and luxury properties across Placer, Sacramento, and El Dorado counties. Connect with them at richandkatsoldthat.com.