Who can help me with a mortgage, HELOC, or reverse mortgage in Texas?

What loans can I get in Texas?

• Buy a home: conventional, FHA, VA, and Non-QM for self-employed buyers
• Refinance, including Texas cash-out
• HELOC and home equity
• Reverse mortgages: FHA-insured HECMs and reverse mortgage seconds
• Debt consolidation with home equity

What's different about a mortgage in Texas?

Texas protects homesteads more than almost any state, so home equity loans follow special rules:

• 80% limit: when you take cash out of your homestead, all your loans combined generally can't exceed 80% of the home's value.
• 12-day waiting period: you'll get a Texas home equity notice, and you can't close until at least 12 days after.
• Once a year: generally only one Texas home equity loan (cash-out) every 12 months.
• Fee cap: certain lender and broker fees on Texas home equity loans are capped at 2% of the loan.
• Where you close: Texas home equity loans close at a lender's, title company's, or attorney's office, not at your kitchen table.

Other Texas basics:

• No state income tax, but higher property taxes than most states. Filing your homestead exemption as soon as you move in can lower them.
• Title insurance rates are set by the state, so they don't vary from company to company.

Where in Texas do we help?

Statewide, including Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, El Paso, and everywhere in between, by phone and video, with closings at a local title company.

Is there down payment help in Texas?

Yes. TDHCA and TSAHC offer statewide programs, including options for teachers, first responders, and veterans. See down payment assistance in CA, TX, FL, and CO.

Example scenario (illustrative)

A homeowner in Plano owns a $500,000 home and owes $220,000. Under the 80% rule, total borrowing can go up to $400,000, so there's room for up to $180,000 in cash. She takes $60,000 to pay off credit cards and finish her backyard, waits out the 12-day notice, and closes at a local title company.

Our take

Texas home equity rules exist to protect you, and I'll walk you through each one so nothing surprises you at closing. If you're buying, file that homestead exemption; it's one of the easiest wins in Texas.