St. Martin Parish · HomeStart Advantage (formerly Keys for Service)
Down payment help in St. Martin Parish, Louisiana
Buying in Breaux Bridge, St. Martinville, Parks, Henderson or Cecilia? HomeStart Advantage gives 4% of your loan as a 0% second, forgiven after 5 years.
Parish seatSt. Martinville
People51,106
Income cap, 3+$103,845
Highest price$554,850
What should you know about buying in St. Martin Parish?
St. Martin Parish, with St. Martinville as its seat, borders Lafayette and shares its HomeStart Assist limits: $90,300 for 1 to 2 people and $103,845 for 3 or more.
The St. Martin Parish School Board runs the public schools, and the St. Martin Parish Sheriff's Office and the Breaux Bridge and St. Martinville police departments are the main public safety employers. Keys for Service was built for them. HomeStart Advantage keeps the benefit and opens it to everyone.
Henderson and the towns near the Atchafalaya Basin have a mix of site-built and manufactured homes. Qualifying manufactured homes need a 660 credit score.
What are the limits in St. Martin Parish?
Household of 1 or 2
Household of 3+
Highest price
$90,300
$103,845
$554,850
St. Martin's HomeStart Assist limits match Lafayette's; HomeStart Advantage allows up to $125,000, and a lender confirms the FHA price limit. Compare every area's limits or run the home budget calculator.
Is there local money in St. Martin Parish?
Yes. The programs below are run closer to home. Some can sit on top of the state program and some replace it, so your loan officer sorts out which ones work together.
61 Louisiana parishes (all except Orleans, Jefferson and a few others)
Help available
4% of the total note amount for down payment, closing costs, prepaids or Realtor commission, with a 30-year fixed FHA/VA/USDA first mortgage
Kind of help
Forgivable second loan
Who it's for
First-time homebuyers; waived for veterans (DD-214, one-time use) and targeted census tracts
Income cap
Effective 05/01/26, non-targeted: $84,900 (1-2) / $97,635 (3+) in most parishes, up to $107,700 / $123,855 in St. Tammany; targeted areas: $101,880 / $118,860 up to $129,240 / $150,780
Price cap
$544,233 (1 unit, non-targeted); $665,173 (targeted)
Only for first-time buyers?
Yes
Also worth knowing
0% 5-year second: no forgiveness in months 1-36, then 1/24 forgiven each month. Homebuyer education for all buyers on title. Min FICO 620 (640 US Bank).
Guide published 05/13/26, rev. 07/20/26; program page https://thecafa.org/homebuyers/cafa-first-home (shows 7% government rate). This is a separate bond first mortgage: choose CAFA OR LHC HomeStart, not both. Essentially a second regional/statewide option with income and price limits close to LHC HomeStart Assist.
Where can you take a homebuyer class near St. Martin Parish?
Nearly every assistance program wants you to finish a homebuyer class before you close. These HUD-approved agencies are within reach of St. Martin Parish and offer classes or one-on-one counseling before you buy:
Counseling agency
Located in
How far
Offers
Meets you
Languages
Saint Mary Community Action Agency, Inc.
Franklin
23 mi
Class and coaching
in person
English
Lafayette Consolidated Government Neighborhood Counseling Services
Lafayette
25 mi
Class and coaching
by phone
English
Saint Martin, Iberia, Lafayette Community Action Agency
Lafayette
26 mi
Class and coaching
in person / by phone / online
English, French, Spanish
Taken from HUD's list of approved counseling agencies. Programs differ on which classes they accept.
Which class will count for you? Ask the loan officer handling your file. They know which courses each Louisiana program accepts, and they can get your pre-approval going in the same conversation. Start the check
Which local employers are covered?
A few of the St. Martin Parish employers whose staff fit the program:
Hey there, I'm Denise. See if you're eligible for down payment assistance in Louisiana. It's a handful of questions and maybe two minutes of your time.
