Teacher Next Door Blog

Help is here for Police, Law Enforcement Officers and support staff!

In the past 12 months, Officer Next Door has helped over 20,000 law enforcement professionals and other public service employees, navigate the home buying process.  

If you work in law enforcement, you are eligible for the Officer Next Door National Home Buying Program™.   There is no fee for using the program and the benefits are substantial.

Home Loans: For the mortgage loan, an Officer Next Door Certified Program Specialist will discuss your individual situation and help you determine which home loan program will benefit you the most.  All loan types are available in connection with the Officer Next Door Program, including conventional, FHA, VA and USDA.  In addition, you may qualify for special programs such as Fannie Mae’s HomeReady  or Freddie Mac’s HomePossible or HomeOne programs.

Grants: Housing GRANTS up to $6,000.00 are currently available to law enforcement and support staff.  Depending on the area, these grants may include government grants and/or the Officer Next Door Grant.  Some of the state specific programs may include Arizona Home in Five, Georgia Dream, Florida First and others. 

Down Payment Assistance: Officer Next Door works with over thirty different down payment assistance programs, including national programs such as Chenoa and Unison.  Currently, down payment assistance amounts may be up to $10,681.00, depending on your location and individual circumstance.

First Time Home Buyers: The Officer Next Door Program is not limited to first time home buyers.  However, law enforcement officers and support staff who are first time home buyers may also benefit from Officer Next Door’s First Time Home Buyers Program.

Other Benefits: Law enforcement and support staff may purchase any home on the market through Officer Next Door and there are no 3-year residency requirements.  There are no application or up-front fees and the Simple Docs Program™, available in most states, may reduce or eliminate the need for you to gather many of the verification documents typically associated with a mortgage loan.   

For more information on the Officer Next Door Program you may visit www.OfficerNextDoor.us or www.teachernextdoor.us/Officer-Next-Door.   

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Teacher Next Door’s stated mission is to increase home ownership, support community development and increase access to affordable housing, free from discrimination.  So why is home ownership so important?  The following research from multiple sources speak clearly to the importance of home ownership in America:

• Children of homeowners are significantly more likely to stay in school until age 17 than children of renters, especially in low-income households, according to a study in the Journal of Urban Economics.
• Children in home owning families outperform children in renting families in both math and reading achievement tests, even when other factors are the same. These children will have fewer behavioral problems, higher educational attainment and greater future earnings, according to a study by an Ohio State University economist.
• The graduation rate for children of homeowners is 19 percent higher than for renters, and they are twice as likely to acquire some post secondary education, according to a study in a journal published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
• A 2014 study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston of homes with a student about to enter college found that a modest increase in home value for homeowners led to an increase in the child’s earnings later in life, while an increase in a property’s value for renters led to a decrease in the child’s earnings.
• “A safe, decent, affordable home is like a vaccine,” Dr. Megan Sandel of the Boston University School of Medicine testified to Congress in 2007. “It literally prevents disease. A safe home can prevent mental health and developmental problems, a decent home may prevent asthma or lead poisoning, and an affordable home can prevent stunted growth and unnecessary hospitalizations.

While it’s true that home ownership will not solve every problem, we are proud to do our part to help families across America realize their dream of becoming homeowners. 

Housing GRANTS and down payment assistance is currently available for teachers, school employees, nurses and healthcare workers, law enforcement, firefighters, government employees and military families.  For a complete list of available programs you may visit    www.teachernextdoor.us/Home.Buying.Programs.


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Research contributed by Garrett Helminski.

“We can never thank you enough! You have been so amazing through this process from answering all our questions, to giving us reassurances that we can do this! You NEVER let us down, you were always there, even at 10PM, calling me back to walk me through documents, to listening to my meltdowns. You made this process a breeze, and it was nice to have someone always in our corner!” 

Many Thanks and Blessings!

Always,

The McWherter Family
Paducah, KY 

Tonight we finally got to unlock the door to our new home. We’re so grateful to all of you—especially Skye for showing up at every turn.

I know you all put up with a lot of worry and questions from me. Remember, for many this is a new language. I’m grateful to each of you for answering my questions and guiding the way. (Especially over text, Kendall!)

Congratulations to new first time home buyer Ashley Fair!  We wish you many happy memories in your lovely new home.   Special thanks to TND Program Specialists Maria Hickman for helping make dreams come true.

For info on GRANTS, down payment assistance and other benefits for first time home buyers visit https://www.teachernextdoor.us/First-Time-Home-Buyer-Program.

FAQ's

Teacher Next Door Reviews

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Extremely Thorough
Teacher Next Door Realtor: Donna Gidley
Teacher Next Door Loan Officer: Basem Jaber

"Basem and his whole team were incredible through this entire process! They explained every detail and were extremely thorough with what I needed to do to get into my dream house!
 

Macie McGeehan

West Creek, NJ

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Alicia Scheel
Orlando, FL

Teacher Next Door Realtor: Joanne Greenbaum
Teacher Next Door Loan Officer: Danielle O'Neil

"Attentive to the process and thorough explanation and follow up!" Top

Extremely Helpful!

Teacher Next Door Realtor: Jeff Rosa
Teacher Next Door Loan Officer: Brandon Childs

"Brandon was extremely helpful walking us through this process."

Travis Rosa
Cincinnati, OH

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Great to work with!

Teacher Next Door Realtor: 
Officer Next Door Loan Officer: Melissa Gutierrez

"Melissa Gutierrez and Caress Gray were great to work with."

Carla Hall
Edna, TX

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Great!  

Nurse Next Door Realtor: Bridgett Roberson
Nurse Next Door Loan Officer:  Jose Palomar

"Jose and his team were great! I have already recommended other people to the Teacher Next Door Program."

Brandon and Usha Fleming
Athens, GA

Top

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Incredibly Helpful

Teacher Next Door Realtor: Mary Jane Coutz 
Teacher Next Door Loan Officer: Basem Jaber

"Basem, David and the rest of the team were incredibly helpful as we went through this process. Basem always answered my questions thoroughly and completely and was patient with me as we talked through options."

Megan Callahan 

Indianopolis, IN

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Little money out of pocket

Teacher Next Door Realtor: Petra Payne
Teacher Next Door Loan Officer: Melissa Gutierrez

"Got my home with little money out of pocket."

Carolyn 
Fort Worth, TX

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Teacher Next Door's First Time Home Buyers Program allows buyers the unique opportunity to combine GRANTS and down payment assistance with the other programs we have available, including Fannie Mae's HomeReady, Freddie Mac's HomePossible and HomeOne programs.  Down payment assistance programs may include state specific programs such as Arizona Home in Five, Georgia Dream, Florida First and others or may include national programs such as Chenoa and Unison, depending on which has the greater benefit.  To be eligible, you must be a teacher or school employee, nurse or healthcare worker, law enforcement, firefighter or government employees.  For more information CLICK HERE.