The Low-Income First-Time Homebuyers Act of 2025, or LIFT Homebuyers Act of 2025, establishes a comprehensive program designed to assist low- and moderate-income, first-time, and first-generation homebuyers in accessing affordable and sustainable home loans. This initiative aims to promote wealth-building through homeownership by creating a specialized lending framework. The program involves the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA), specifically through their respective Loan Guarantee Agencies: the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the Rural Housing Service (RHS). Central to the program is the establishment of LIFT HOME Funds within each Loan Guarantee Agency, managed by their respective Secretaries. These funds will be used to guarantee covered mortgage loans, with the Secretary of the Treasury playing a crucial role by purchasing securities backed by these loans. The Treasury may also designate financial institutions to act as agents and manage financial instruments, ensuring liquidity and market participation for these specialized mortgages. Covered mortgage loans under this program are designed with specific features, including an original term of 20 years (or a term determined necessary for market liquidity), fixed interest rates, and a mortgage insurance premium or loan guarantee fee capped at 4 percent of the loan balance. These loans must be for single-family residences used as the principal residence of an eligible homebuyer. Eligibility for homebuyers is defined by income limits (up to 120% or 140% of area median income for high-cost areas), and the requirement to be both a first-time homebuyer and a first-generation homebuyer . A first-generation homebuyer is defined as an individual whose living parents or legal guardians do not own a principal residence, or whose deceased parents did not, and whose spouse or domestic partner has not owned a principal residence in the last three years. The bill allows for good faith reliance on borrower attestations for eligibility, reducing documentation burdens. The Secretaries of HUD, Agriculture, and the Treasury are authorized to issue necessary regulations and guidance to implement the program effectively, with appropriations authorized to support its operation.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
Finance and Financial Sector
LIFT Homebuyers Act of 2025
USA119th CongressS-2719| Senate
| Updated: 9/4/2025
The Low-Income First-Time Homebuyers Act of 2025, or LIFT Homebuyers Act of 2025, establishes a comprehensive program designed to assist low- and moderate-income, first-time, and first-generation homebuyers in accessing affordable and sustainable home loans. This initiative aims to promote wealth-building through homeownership by creating a specialized lending framework. The program involves the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA), specifically through their respective Loan Guarantee Agencies: the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the Rural Housing Service (RHS). Central to the program is the establishment of LIFT HOME Funds within each Loan Guarantee Agency, managed by their respective Secretaries. These funds will be used to guarantee covered mortgage loans, with the Secretary of the Treasury playing a crucial role by purchasing securities backed by these loans. The Treasury may also designate financial institutions to act as agents and manage financial instruments, ensuring liquidity and market participation for these specialized mortgages. Covered mortgage loans under this program are designed with specific features, including an original term of 20 years (or a term determined necessary for market liquidity), fixed interest rates, and a mortgage insurance premium or loan guarantee fee capped at 4 percent of the loan balance. These loans must be for single-family residences used as the principal residence of an eligible homebuyer. Eligibility for homebuyers is defined by income limits (up to 120% or 140% of area median income for high-cost areas), and the requirement to be both a first-time homebuyer and a first-generation homebuyer . A first-generation homebuyer is defined as an individual whose living parents or legal guardians do not own a principal residence, or whose deceased parents did not, and whose spouse or domestic partner has not owned a principal residence in the last three years. The bill allows for good faith reliance on borrower attestations for eligibility, reducing documentation burdens. The Secretaries of HUD, Agriculture, and the Treasury are authorized to issue necessary regulations and guidance to implement the program effectively, with appropriations authorized to support its operation.