This mortgage helps borrowers pay off student loans

Eagle Home Mortgage has introduced a mortgage program that helps borrowers pay off student loans.

Under the company’s Student Loan Debt Mortgage Program, borrowers can direct up to 3% of the purchase price to their debt. The program applies to new homes built by Lennar. Eagle Home is part of the Lennar family of companies.

At closing, Lennar contributes up to $13,000, depending on the sales price, to pay down loans incurred by the borrower while attending universities, colleges, community colleges, trade schools, and other certificate-granting programs. The program does not apply to parents who took loans to finance a child's education.

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In addition to the contribution, which does not increase the home price or add to the mortgage loan balance, borrowers may also be eligible for other incentives, such as credits towards closing costs.

To qualify for the program, the buyer must meet credit and income requirements. The maximum loan amount is $424,100, with down payments as low as 3%. The program is being offered on a trial basis on new homes built by Lennar. The homebuilder provides single-family residences, townhomes, and detached condos.

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"Americans are more burdened than ever by student loans, with $1.3 trillion in outstanding student loans spread out among 42 million borrowers," Eagle Home President Jimmy Timmons said. "Particularly with millennial buyers, people who want to buy a home of their own are not feeling as though they can move forward. Our program is designed to relieve some of that burden and remove that barrier to owning a home."