Housing.

Existing law establishes the CalHome Program, administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development, to enable low- and very low income households to become or remain homeowners. Existing law requires the department, under the program, to provide grant or loan funds to local public agencies or nonprofit corporations for specified purposes relating to the promotion of home ownership. Existing law requires that financial assistance provided to individual households be in the form of deferred payment loans, repayable upon sale or transfer of the homes, when they cease to be owner-occupied, or upon the loan maturity date. This bill would, notwithstanding any other law, authorize the department to permit the downpayment assistance loan to be subordinated to refinancing if it determines that the borrower and the proposed subordination meet certain requirements. Existing law requires the California Housing Finance Agency to administer the California Homebuyer's Downpayment Assistance Program for the purpose of assisting first-time low- and moderate-income homebuyers utilizing existing mortgage financing. Existing law authorizes a borrower to refinance a mortgage under specified circumstances. Existing law authorizes the agency, in its discretion, to permit a downpayment assistance loan to be subordinated to refinancing if it determines that certain criteria have been met. Existing law authorizes the agency to permit subordination on those terms and conditions as it determines are reasonable. Existing law requires the California Housing Finance Agency to administer the Home Purchase Assistance Program for the purpose of assisting first-time homebuyers utilizing existing mortgage financing. Existing law also requires the agency to administer the Extra Credit Teacher Home Purchase Program, as specified, and any other school personnel home ownership assistance program that is set forth by the California Debt Limit Allocation Committee. This bill would further extend the authority of the agency to permit a downpayment assistance loan made under any of those programs to be subordinated to refinancing, subject to certain criteria and under terms and conditions as the agency determines are reasonable, unless the borrower has sufficient equity to repay the loan. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.