City Mortgage is available to qualified buyers of 1-4 unit properties in the City of Chicago. The program is available citywide and applicants must meet income and purchase price guidelines.

Federal law requires that a homebuyer satisfy each of the following guidelines:

• First-Time Homebuyer or Target Area Purchase
  Any person who has not owned a principal residence at any time during the three years prior to closing a loan under this program is considered a first-time home buyer. Non first-time home buyers are also eligible if they purchase a home in a designated target area.
   
• Because the program is intended to benefit low- and moderate-income households, federal law imposes maximum limits* on the annual gross income of home buyers.
   
• Federal law also imposes limits on the purchase price** of homes financed under the program.
   
• Principal Residence
  The home buyer must occupy the home as a principal residence within a reasonable period which, under most circumstances, may not exceed 60 days after financing is provided. A principal residence is a home occupied primarily for residential purposes and does not include a home used as an investment property, as a recreational home or a home in which 15 percent or more of its total area is used for a trade or business.
   
• One-to-Four-Family Home
  Each residence financed must contain 1-4 units. A one-family residence includes a detached home, one unit of a duplex, a townhouse or a condominium unit. If the residence is a 2-4 unit building, one unit of the residence must be the principal residence of the building owner.

** Note ** First-time homebuyers must receive pre-purchase counseling to be eligible and must provide a Certificate of Completion of pre-purchase counseling with their applications. See list of housing counseling agencies. This description is only a summary of the requirements under the City Mortgage program.