The Bank of America announced it will not require down payments on loans in certain primarily Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in five U.S. cities.
The new program from Bank of America is “aimed at helping first-time homebuyers in Black and Hispanic neighborhoods by offering mortgages that don’t require down payments, closing costs or minimum credit scores,” according to Bloomberg. The loans will also not require mortgage insurance.
The trial program is being rolled out “in certain Black/African American and/or Hispanic-Latino neighborhoods” in five U.S. cities: Detroit; Miami; Los Angeles; Dallas; and Charlotte, North Carolina.
Dubbed the “Community Affordable Loan Solution,” the program will determine eligibility not by credit score, but numerous other factors, such as a borrower’s history of paying rent or utility bills on time.
The head of neighborhood and community lending at the bank, AJ Barkley, remarked, “Our Community Affordable Loan Solution will help make the dream of sustained homeownership attainable for more Black and Hispanic families, and it is part of our broader commitment to the communities that we serve.”
Bloomberg noted that the Bank of America “wouldn’t disclose the planned size of the program, which may be expanded later to other cities.”
The outlet also pointed out that “Under the BofA program, the lender is giving homebuyers down-payment grants of $10,000 to $15,000 so they have immediate equity in their homes.”
Bank of America also recently announced a program titled the “Small Business Down Payment Grant Program,” which was created to “extend credit to historically disadvantaged small business borrowers” and “help create generational wealth opportunities for minority and women business owners.”
Spencer Lindquist is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerLndqst and reach out at slindquist@breitbart.com.
