What Georgia Dream is
Georgia Dream is the Department of Community Affairs homeownership program. It pairs a 30-year fixed-rate first mortgage with down payment assistance, so buyers who can carry a payment but cannot assemble cash at closing can still buy. Mortgage licensing belongs to the Department of Banking and Finance; the Dream program belongs to DCA.
Who counts as a first-time buyer
DCA defines eligible first-time buyers as "homebuyers who have not owned a home in the past three years," with an exception for purchases in targeted areas, where prior ownership does not disqualify.
This is the trap. "First-time buyer" here does not mean never having owned a home. A buyer who sold her house four years ago qualifies. The look-back is three years, not ten. There is also no requirement to qualify for a VA loan; Georgia Dream first mortgages may be FHA, USDA-RD, VA or conventional eligible loans.
The assistance, and what form it takes
Standard down payment assistance is 5 percent of the purchase price or a maximum of $10,000, whichever is less. It is a zero-interest deferred second mortgage with no monthly payment, repaid when the home is sold, refinanced, or is no longer the primary residence.
Worked example: on a $180,000 purchase, 5% × $180,000 = $9,000, which is below the $10,000 cap, so the buyer receives $9,000 as a zero-interest deferred second mortgage. It is not a grant — getting the amount right but the form wrong is the common miss. The 6 percent rate and the $12,500 maximum belong to the PEN and CHOICE products, and nothing here is forgiven over five years.
Borrower requirements
The program requires a minimum of $1,000 of the borrower's own funds in the transaction, and homebuyer counseling is required for all Georgia Dream loans.
A 20 percent down payment is not required — that would defeat the point of down payment assistance. The first mortgage is 30-year fixed, never adjustable. And the borrower need not be left with nothing: liquid assets after closing are capped at $20,000 or 20 percent of the sales price, whichever is greater.