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If you’re thinking of buying a home in Oregon in 2022, you’ll want to choose the right mortgage type for you, as well as the appropriate down payment amount for a typical home in the state.
Home prices in Portland, Oregon have increased considerably over the last year or so, and they’re still on their way up. Prices for homes in the city are still higher than the average in the state, which means the down payment amount you need to put forth is still hefty.
So where are we now? What’s the average or typical down payment for a home buyer in Portland, Oregon as of early 2022? Here’s an updated look.
As of February 2022, the median home value in Portland, Oregon was around $564,334. That was the midpoint for the local real estate market. So half of all homes were priced above that level, while the other half were priced below it.
That’s a good figure to use for calculating the minimum down payment for a “typical” home purchase in Portland.
Here’s how it would break down under different mortgage programs:
So that’s a quick overview of what the minimum investment would be for a median-priced home in Portland, with different types of mortgage loans.
A lot of first-time home buyers in Portland, Oregon (and nationwide) believe that they have to put down at least 20% to qualify for a mortgage loan. Consumer surveys have shown this to be a pretty widespread misconception among first-time home buyers especially.
The truth is that the typical home buyer doesn’t have to put down 20%. As mentioned above, the minimum down payment for borrowers in Portland can be as low as 3% for a conventional loan. FHA allows borrowers to put down as little as 3.5%. And military folks who qualify for VA financing can finance up to 100% of the purchase price.
Here’s more evidence to debunk the 20% down payment myth. Zillow recently published an updated version of its “Consumer Housing Trends Report.” It was based on surveys from 13,000 households nationwide.
Among other things, their in-depth analysis determined that 56% of home buyers in the United States made down payments of less than 20% when buying a property.
It’s also worth noting that many borrowers use multiple sources to come up with the funds needed for their upfront investment. For instance, a lot of borrowers combine money from their own savings with gift money provided by a family member. This is a common financing strategy.
The takeaway: The average down payment for Portland has risen a bit over the past few years, due to home-price growth. But the mortgage industry is fairly flexible when it comes to these upfront investments. By using a low-down-payment mortgage option (possibly in conjunction with gift money from a relative), home buyers can reduce their upfront costs.
If you need a mortgage in Portland, call the experts to help. Sammamish Mortgage is a local lending firm serving the broader Pacific Northwest region including Washington state, Idaho, Colorado, and Oregon. We are proud to offer a wide variety of mortgage programs and products with flexible qualification criteria, and have been doing so since 1992. Please contact us if you have any questions or are ready to apply for a home loan.
Whether you’re buying a home or ready to refinance, our professionals can help.
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No Obligation and transparency 24/7. Instantly compare live rates and costs from our network of lenders across the country. Real-time accurate rates and closing costs for a variety of loan programs custom to your specific situation.