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Down Payment Assistance: The Competitive Advantage Every Loan Officer Needs

John Jurkovich (The Broker Builder)
January 30, 2025

Let’s be honest—coming up with a down payment is the single biggest challenge for homebuyers today. With the average first-time homebuyer now clocking in at 38 years old, saving for a home has only gotten harder. Between rising home prices, student loan debt, and life’s endless expenses, buyers need help.

And if you’re a mortgage professional, you can either fight for deals at the end of the process when buyers already feel like a commodity, or you can move way up the funnel and educate them from day one.

That’s why I sat down with Rob Chrane, founder and CEO of Down Payment Resource, to talk about how mortgage pros can use down payment assistance (DPA) programs to close more deals, connect with more buyers, and differentiate themselves in the market.

What is Down Payment Resource?

Rob describes Down Payment Resource (DPR) as “Match.com for down payment assistance.”

His company built the only database of its kind—a real-time, constantly updated list of over 2,200 down payment assistance programs across the U.S.

What’s inside?

  • 75% of these programs are DPA grants and loans (some forgivable, some deferred, some due on sale).
  • The rest include affordable first mortgage programs, tax credits, and employer assistance programs.
  • A major misconception? DPA isn’t just for first-time buyers. 38% of programs have NO first-time homebuyer requirement.

DPR matches borrowers with the right programs and provides tools for mortgage professionals to integrate those programs into their business.

Why Every Loan Officer Should Care About DPA

I get it—some LOs avoid DPA because they think it’s a pain in the ass.

But most of that comes from bad information.

  • Many LOs have only seen one or two programs (usually from an account executive’s one-pager), so they assume all DPA is complicated.
  • Agents have been burned by bad LOs who didn’t know what they were doing, so they’ve spread the myth that “DPA loans are a nightmare.”
  • Meanwhile, 70%+ of buyers still think they need 15-20% down to buy a home.

That’s a problem—and also a massive opportunity.

Rob put it best:

“There is no stronger call to action in mortgage and real estate than: ‘Down payment assistance is available. See if you’re eligible.’”

Buyers understand that message. It gets them to raise their hand.

 

 

How Down Payment Resource Works for Loan Officers

DPR has tools for both companies and individual loan officers, but here’s what matters for you:

1. Automated Matching System

  • Plug in a borrower’s details and instantly see which DPA programs they qualify for.
  • Only see programs your company actually offers, so there’s no wasted time.

2. Consumer-Facing Lead Generation Tools

  • Widgets, landing pages, and integrations with MLS platforms let buyers search for DPA directly from your site.
  • Leads go directly to YOU—DPR doesn’t sell leads or share your data.

3. Industry-Wide Partnerships

  • DPR powers down payment assistance tools for major platforms like Zillow, Redfin, and Realtor.com.
  • Buyers are already seeing this information at the start of their home search. If you’re not offering it, someone else is.

Why Zillow is Your Biggest Competitor (And What to Do About It)

Let’s talk about why this matters for lead conversion.

Zillow is NOT just a home search website.

They are getting really good at scooping up early-stage buyers, nurturing them, and keeping them inside their ecosystem—eventually handing them off to a Zillow-preferred agent and lender.

If your site doesn’t offer valuable, high-funnel content (like down payment assistance tools), buyers will go elsewhere.

As Rob pointed out, most buyers are looking at homes online 6-12 months before they buy.

If you don’t engage them early, you won’t be there when they’re ready.

How to Use DPA to Get More Realtor Referrals

Want to build stronger relationships with agents?

Rob dropped a golden strategy:

  1. Find an agent who’s already doing good business (aka, not a rookie).
  2. Look at their sales history—are they mostly doing conventional loans?
  3. Call them up and say something like this:
    “Hey, I see you work mostly with conventional buyers. What are you doing with the buyers who don’t quite have enough saved yet? Do you have a place to send them?”
  4. When they say ‘Not really,’ respond with:
    “Awesome. I have a tool that can help. Just send them here, and I’ll help them figure out if they’re eligible for down payment help. And if they’re serious about moving forward, I’ll send them right back to you.”
  5. BOOM—instant value, instant relationship.

This is how you get your foot in the door without begging for pre-approvals.

If I Were a Loan Officer Today, Here’s What I’d Do

Rob has been in the business since before Jimmy Carter was president (no joke).

If he were a loan officer today, here’s his playbook:

  1. Get a tool like Down Payment Resource
    • It costs $39/month for one state. If it gets you ONE extra deal per year, it pays for itself 10x over.
  2. Start posting about DPA every week
    • Use social media, email, and video to tell people:
      • “Down payment help is available.”
      • “See if you qualify.”
      • “Most buyers think they need 15% down, but they don’t.”
  3. Use DPA as a lead magnet
    • Add a “Check Your Eligibility” button to your website, email signature, and social media.
    • When buyers engage, follow up with education and next steps.
  4. Leverage it for Realtor relationships
    • Show agents how DPA can help them close more deals and pick up the buyers they’d normally turn away.
    • They’ll start sending you business.

Final Thoughts: The Mortgage Industry is Changing—Are You?

If you want to win in 2025, you need to stop thinking like a transactional loan officer and start thinking like a problem solver.

And right now, the biggest problem for buyers is affording the down payment.

If you’re not offering solutions like DPA, your competition will.

“If you post once a week that down payment help is available, I guarantee your business won’t be worse off in a year.”

So why not try it?

If you want to learn more about Down Payment Resource, I’ll drop the links below. And if you need help integrating this into your business, reach out—I’d love to help.

Let’s stop fighting over scraps and start creating new opportunities.

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John Jurkovich (The Broker Builder)

My name is John Jurkovich aka "The Mortgage Broker Builder". I've been building mortgage companies and running sales teams for the last 3+ Decades. I recently decided it was time to take my knowledge and experience to the world of Bankers And Brokers so we can grow the future of the mini broker!

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