- A California bill that would aid undocumented migrants on the path to home ownership has advanced in the state’s legislature.
California (Agencies): Democrats on the California Senate Appropriations Committee last week unanimously approved AB 1840, a bill that would amend the California Dream for All Shared Appreciation Loan program by preventing it from denying prospective homeowners based on their immigration status.
The program was launched in 2023 and gives first-time homebuyers in the Golden State a loan of up to 20 percent of the home’s purchase price to be used as a down payment.
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The bill will effectively allow migrants to buy homes without having to save for years to fund a down payment, which is almost always required by financial firms providing mortgages.
The loans from the program don’t accrue interest or require monthly payments, and when the main mortgage is refinanced or the house is sold again, the borrower pays back the original amount of the loan plus 20 percent of any increase in value.
The legislation now only needs the approval of the Democrat-supermajority state Senate and a signature from Governor Gavin Newsom to be enacted.
“The social and economic benefits of homeownership should be available to everyone. As such, the California Dream for All Program should be available to all,” bill author and assemblymember Joaquin Arambula said, according to a report in the LA Times.