New California Bill Would Make Illegal Immigrants Eligible for First Time Homebuyer Loans

Joaquin Arambula, a Democratic assemblyman from California, introduced Assembly Bill 1840 earlier this year, which could create an alternative way for illegal immigrants to achieve homeownership.

The bill is set to expand eligibility criteria for a state loan program to expand these loans to include undocumented migrants that are first-time buyers.

Arambula’s update to the bill states, “an applicant under the program shall not be disqualified solely based on the applicant’s immigration status.”

“It’s that ambiguity for undocumented individuals, despite the fact that they’ve qualified under existing criteria, such as having a qualified mortgage [that] underscores the pressing need for us to introduce legislation,” Arambula told the LA Times.

The bill focuses on the California Dream for All Shared Appreciation Loans program, which launched spring of 2023 to give qualifying first-time home buyers a loan that covers up to 20% of a property’s purchase price that will not accumulate interest or have required monthly payments. Loanees are instead expected to pay back the original loan amount in addition to 20% of the increase in the home’s value when the property’s mortgage is refinanced or resold.

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The LA Times reported the California loan program garnered 2,300 applicants in less than two weeks last year before the program’s applications were halted, and that “the program will replace its first-come, first-serve basis with a lottery.”

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