First-time home buyer programs in Virginia.

How these programs work

You do not apply to Virginia Housing directly. You apply through a Virginia Housing approved lender, who checks your income, the price and the loan against the limits and tells you which programs you qualify for. Find an approved lender.

Most of these programs pair with a Virginia Housing first mortgage, and many require a free homebuyer education class. Start both early: a pre-approval tells you which homes to look at, and the class takes time to schedule or finish.

Grants you never repay

Down Payment Assistance Grant

A grant toward your down payment, paired with a Virginia Housing FHA or conventional bond loan. You must be a first-time buyer (or buying in an Area of Economic Opportunity), with household income and price within the limits below. It can be combined with assistance from outside Virginia Housing.

Closing Cost Assistance Grant

Up to 2 percent of the purchase price, for buyers using a Virginia Housing VA or USDA Rural Housing Service bond loan. It can pay closing costs, the USDA guarantee fee or the VA funding fee. The same first-time buyer, income and price rules apply.

The Plus Second Mortgage

The Plus Second Mortgage pairs a Virginia Housing first mortgage with a second mortgage that covers your down payment, so you can buy with little cash of your own.

Maximum

5 percent of the purchase priceDepends on your credit score and first mortgage

Total financing

Up to 1.5 percent more than the priceFor buyers who qualify

Closing costs

Can be covered, in whole or in partFor certain credit-qualified borrowers

Terms

30-year fixed rateNo prepayment penalty

Who can use it

First-time and repeat buyersWithin Virginia Housing income limits

First mortgages

Virginia Housing's non-bond conventional loan does not require first-time buyer status and has no sales price limit of its own, though programs combined with it may.

Income and price limits for Christiansburg

Limits depend on where the home is. Montgomery County is not in a metro area Virginia Housing lists separately, so Christiansburg uses the "All Other Areas of Virginia" limits, effective August 1, 2026.

Shop within the limit: homes under $300K, homes from $300K to $500K and townhomes.

Free homebuyer education

Virginia Housing's homebuyer classes are free: in person, in a virtual session, or online at your own pace, where the course takes about eight hours on average. Many Virginia Housing loans require it, and it is worth taking either way, alongside our guide to buying a home in Christiansburg. Sign up at Virginia Housing.

Save on Virginia income tax while you save

Virginia lets you name an account at a Virginia financial institution as a first-time home buyer savings account. Interest and gains in it that are taxed federally are not taxed by Virginia: you subtract them on your state return.

• The money can only pay the down payment or closing costs on a single-family home for a qualified beneficiary: someone who has never owned a single-family home and lives in Virginia when buying.
• Each account can hold no more than $50,000 of principal and $150,000 of principal and interest.
• Use it for anything else and you repay every subtraction you claimed.

For service members and veterans

Virginia Housing offers a VA-guaranteed loan, and borrowers who qualify for it can also get the Closing Cost Assistance Grant. Its Granting Freedom program helps pay for home modifications for veterans and service members with a service-connected disability from a line-of-duty injury.