USDA home loan is a zero down payment mortgage (100% financing) for eligible rural and suburban homebuyers. USDA loans are issued through the USDA loan program, also known as the USDA Rural Development Guaranteed Housing Loan Program, by the United States Department of Agriculture.

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In order to be eligible for many USDA loans, the borrower’s household income must meet the eligibility guidelines and the home to be purchased must be located in an eligible rural area as defined by USDA. There are also credit score requirements (minimum of 640) and debt-to-income ratio requirements (dependent on the credit score) that borrowers would have to meet in order to obtain the loan.

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To determine if a property is located in an eligible rural area, click on the following link: https://eligibility.sc.egov.usda.gov/eligibility/welcomeAction.do?pageAction=sfp.  Click on “Accept” at the bottom of the page then select the Property Eligibility link at the top of the page. This will take you into the page where you can enter the property address in “Find your address”. The result will show whether the address is located in an area eligible for USDA Financing.

 

To determine income eligibility of an applicant/household, click on the following link:

https://eligibility.sc.egov.usda.gov/eligibility/welcomeAction.do?pageAction=sfp.  Click on “Accept” at the bottom of the page then select the Income Eligibility link at the top of the page.  This will take you to the page where you can select the State and County in which the applicant lives, and answer the 4 questions in “Household Member Information”.  Click on “Next” at the bottom of the page and on the next page complete the “Expenses and Deductions” and “Gross Monthly Income” for all members of the household.  Click on “Finish” at the bottom and the next page will reveal whether the borrower’s total household income meets the eligibility requirement for the program.