Burlington, Washington Down Payment Assistance Guide: ONE+ and WSHFC Programs Explained

Saving for a down payment in 2026 feels like filling a bucket with a hole in the bottom. Groceries cost noticeably more than they did two years ago. Rent has crept up year after year, and the raise that felt meaningful in January got quietly absorbed by higher insurance premiums and a gas bill that never fully dropped back to where it was. The savings account exists. The deposits happen. And yet the number at the bottom stubbornly refuses to reach the figure a lender quoted eighteen months ago. That grinding feeling — of doing the right things and still watching homeownership recede slightly further each quarter — is exactly where a lot of Burlington buyers find themselves right now.

There is a specific program worth knowing about first. ONE+ by Rocket Mortgage lets the buyer put down 1% of the purchase price. Rocket Mortgage contributes the other 2% — up to $7,000 — as a grant. Not a deferred loan. Not a second lien that shows up at the closing table when you sell ten years from now. A grant, meaning it never gets repaid. The buyer who was $10,000 short now needs a fraction of what they thought. And this is not a first-time buyer program: repeat buyers qualify as long as household income falls within the ONE+ limit for Skagit County. For buyers outside that range, Washington's WSHFC Home Advantage program — with its $180,000 income ceiling — picks up where ONE+ leaves off.

ONE+ does carry a purchase price ceiling, and not every home in Burlington falls under it. The median sold price in Burlington clusters around $479,000 to $490,000 across multiple sources, which puts most of the market above ONE+'s $350,000 loan limit. That ceiling matters, and this guide addresses it honestly. For buyers shopping above it, Washington state programs are among the strongest in the country. This guide explains both options, compares them directly, and helps you figure out which one fits your situation before you start making offers.

ONE+ by Rocket Mortgage: Washington's Only True Grant

Every other down payment assistance program in Washington functions as a deferred second mortgage. The money is real and it solves the cash-to-close problem, but it sits behind the scenes as a lien on your home, quietly waiting to be repaid when you sell or refinance. ONE+ is structurally different. Rocket Mortgage contributes 2% of the purchase price — up to $7,000 — with no repayment requirement, ever. The buyer brings 1%. Together they create 3% equity at closing, but only $3,500 of that came out of the buyer's pocket on a $350,000 home. That distinction is not a footnote. It is the entire reason ONE+ is the lead option on this page.

The ONE+ Ceiling: What It Means for Burlington Buyers

ONE+'s $350,000 loan limit is worth addressing without softening it. At a multi-source consensus median of around $479,000 to $490,000 for Burlington, the typical home in this market prices out of ONE+'s range before most buyers even start touring. The program is not irrelevant here — it is precisely the right tool for the right buyer — but that buyer is shopping in a narrow slice of Burlington's inventory.

Price Range	What's Typically Available in Burlington	ONE+ Eligible?
Under $320K	Virtually nothing in single-family; possibly an older condo unit	Yes — if found
$320K–$350K	One listing at the floor of the market; moves quickly	Yes
$350K–$500K	The bulk of Burlington's mid-tier inventory, including many ranch-style and Dutch Colonial homes	No
$500K+	Updated homes, larger lots, newer construction	No

The single active listing at roughly $349,950 that sits at the bottom of Burlington's current market represents essentially the only true sub-$350,000 single-family home available at the time of research. Port Susan Condominiums is the neighborhood most likely to produce a unit within ONE+'s range — condo prices in that corridor occasionally fall below the ceiling, particularly for older or smaller units. Buyers targeting ONE+ in Burlington should be prepared to move quickly when inventory appears at this price point, because 26 days on market is the current average and sub-$350K homes move faster than that.

For most Burlington buyers, the honest answer is that ONE+'s loan ceiling puts the majority of available homes out of reach for this specific program. That does not mean the down payment problem goes away — it means WSHFC programs become the primary path, and they are strong.

When You Need More: Washington's State DPA Programs

For buyers whose purchase price or income sits outside ONE+'s parameters, Washington's WSHFC programs are among the most generous state offerings in the country. These are real tools, not fallback options. The key distinction from ONE+ is structural: every WSHFC program delivers assistance as a deferred second mortgage, not a grant. The money solves the same cash-to-close problem, but it follows you to the closing table when you eventually sell or refinance.

Home Advantage — The $180K Income Ceiling Program

The headline fact about Home Advantage is the income limit: up to $180,000 statewide for most counties, including Skagit. A dual-income household in Burlington earning $160,000 qualifies. This is not a low-income program, and the income ceiling is high enough to capture a significant portion of working professional households in the Skagit Valley. Assistance comes as 4–5% of the first mortgage amount structured as a 0% interest second mortgage, deferred for 30 years, with no monthly payment on the DPA portion. It is compatible with conventional, FHA, VA, and USDA loans — which is a meaningful advantage over ONE+'s conventional-only requirement. There is no first-time buyer requirement. One commitment is required before closing: a 5-hour WSHFC-approved homebuyer education seminar, which is available online and can be completed on a weekend afternoon.

House Key Opportunity — For Lower-Income First-Time Buyers

House Key Opportunity is designed for buyers with lower incomes who are also pairing their purchase with specific down payment assistance programs. It requires a first-time buyer designation. Income thresholds for Skagit County range based on household size, generally falling in the $100,000 to $115,000 range. The program can deliver up to $55,000 in down payment assistance under the right conditions, paired with a House Key Opportunity first mortgage. Because it is bond-funded, it carries IRS recapture potential — a tax that can apply if the home is sold within nine years AND the seller's income has grown significantly AND a capital gain is realized. All three conditions must be met, but buyers should understand the mechanism before committing.

HomeChoice — Disability Households

HomeChoice provides up to $15,000 in down payment assistance for borrowers who have a disability or who have a household member with a disability living in the home. The income limit is $126,800 statewide for most counties outside King and Snohomish. The second loan carries no interest and no monthly payment, and is repaid only when the home is sold, refinanced, or the first mortgage is paid off.

Covenant Homeownership Program

The Covenant program is one of the most distinctive tools in Washington's DPA toolkit. It serves first-time buyers from communities that experienced historical housing discrimination — including Black, Hispanic, Indigenous, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander buyers — and offers up to $150,000 or 20% of the home's purchase price at 0% interest. Buyers whose household income is at or below 80% AMI may be eligible for full loan forgiveness after five years of homeownership. The program has already helped over 547 households across 24 Washington counties, and funding continues through WSHFC-approved lenders.

The structural difference between ONE+ and all WSHFC programs is simple: ONE+ is a grant — paid, done, gone. WSHFC programs defer the cost until you exit the home. Both solve the cash-to-close problem on day one. ONE+ costs you nothing on the back end. WSHFC programs recapture their contribution when you eventually sell or refinance.

ONE+ vs Washington Bond Programs: The Direct Comparison

	ONE+ by Rocket	WSHFC Home Advantage	WSHFC House Key
Assistance type	True grant — no repayment	Deferred second loan	Deferred second loan
Max loan	$350,000	No ceiling	No ceiling
Income limit	≤80% AMI (~$88–90K, Skagit)	$180,000 statewide	Varies by county
Cash at closing	✅ Up to $7,000 grant	✅ 4–5% of loan	✅ Up to $55,000
Repayment required	Never	Yes — at sale/refi	Yes — at sale/refi
Recapture tax risk	None	None	Yes (if 3 conditions met)
First-time required	No	No	Yes
Loan types	Conventional only	Conv, FHA, VA, USDA	Conv, FHA, VA, USDA
Who processes	Rocket Mortgage	WSHFC-approved lender	WSHFC-approved lender
Education required	No	Yes — 5-hour seminar	Yes — 5-hour seminar

When ONE+ clearly wins: the purchase price is at or under the $350K ceiling, household income falls below 80% AMI for Skagit County, the buyer wants a clean grant with no repayment tail, and no seminar is preferred. For that buyer — typically someone purchasing a Port Susan condo or a rare entry-level home that surfaces near the bottom of Burlington's market — ONE+ delivers $7,000 in assistance that never comes back.

When Home Advantage makes more sense: the purchase price exceeds the ONE+ ceiling, which describes the majority of Burlington buyers given the current median. Income between 80% AMI and $180,000 puts a buyer outside ONE+'s range but fully inside Home Advantage territory. Buyers using VA or FHA loans have no ONE+ option at all — Home Advantage covers those loan types. For Burlington buyers targeting the $400,000 to $540,000 range, Home Advantage is the more practical tool, and its 4–5% DPA on the first mortgage can contribute $16,000 to $25,000 toward closing depending on the loan size.

What ONE+ Looks Like at the Closing Table

Item	Amount
Purchase price	$340,000 (example)
Buyer's 1% down	$3,400
Rocket's 2% grant	$6,800 — never repaid
Total down payment	$10,200 (3%)
Estimated closing costs	$6,500–$8,500 (varies by lender credits, title, county)
Buyer's estimated total cash to close	~$9,900–$11,900

The buyer came up with $3,400 toward a down payment instead of $10,200. The $6,800 grant covers the rest of the down payment entirely, no strings attached. Closing costs exist regardless of which program a buyer uses — those figures vary by lender credits, title company, and specific county fees and are best reviewed during the pre-approval conversation.

Does DPA Actually Work in Burlington's Competitive Market?

Burlington is not a pressure-cooker market the way some Puget Sound cities are, but it is not slow either. Homes are selling in a median of roughly 26 days, and the inventory sitting on the market at any given time is thin — typically fewer than 25 active listings across the entire city. In that environment, DPA-assisted offers can compete, particularly when the buyer is pre-approved through a recognizable lender and the program is conventional. Sellers who have concerns about financing contingencies respond better to conventional pre-approvals, which both ONE+ and Home Advantage's conventional pairing deliver.

The honest challenge for ONE+ in Burlington is inventory, not seller resistance. At a market median near $479,000 to $490,000, the sub-$350,000 homes that ONE+ can finance are genuinely scarce. Port Susan Condominiums is the most realistic source of eligible inventory — older condo units in that neighborhood occasionally surface in the $290,000 to $340,000 range, and those deals move fast. Buyers using ONE+ should be pre-approved before they find the home, not after, because waiting for underwriting after finding a sub-$350K Burlington listing is a near-certain way to lose it.

For buyers targeting the $400,000 to $540,000 range — which represents Burlington's core market — Home Advantage is doing the real lifting right now. The 0% deferred second lien at 4–5% of the loan amount delivers meaningful cash to close without requiring the buyer to find inventory that barely exists. A buyer purchasing at $480,000 with a Home Advantage DPA of 4% receives approximately $18,400 applied toward down payment and closing costs, which for many buyers is the exact gap between qualifying and not.

Local Expert Takeaway: For Burlington buyers earning under roughly $88,000 to $90,000 and eyeing a Port Susan condo or the rare sub-$350K listing that surfaces near the bottom of the market, ONE+ is the cleanest deal available — a $7,000 grant with no repayment tail and no education seminar required. For the majority of Burlington buyers shopping in the $400,000 to $540,000 range, WSHFC Home Advantage is the more practical path, and the $180,000 income ceiling means it serves far more households than most people realize. Whatever program you're leaning toward, get pre-approved before you start touring — Burlington's inventory is thin and the homes that DPA can actually reach move before unprepared buyers have a chance to act.

Quick Takeaways & FAQs

✅ ONE+ is the only true grant program available in Burlington — Rocket Mortgage contributes 2% (up to $7,000) with no repayment, ever. The buyer brings 1%. It works best for sub-$350K purchases, which in Burlington means primarily Port Susan condo inventory.

⚠️ Most Burlington homes price above ONE+'s ceiling — at a market median near $479,000, the majority of buyers will need WSHFC Home Advantage, which covers purchase prices well above the $350K ONE+ limit and serves households earning up to $180,000.

📍 Get pre-approved before you find the home — Burlington has fewer than 25 active listings at most times, and DPA-eligible inventory at the low end of the market moves faster than the city-wide average. Pre-approval through Rocket Mortgage for ONE+ or a WSHFC-approved lender for Home Advantage takes the same amount of time either way and puts you in a position to act the day a listing appears.

Is there down payment assistance in Burlington, Washington?

Yes, Burlington buyers have access to multiple down payment assistance programs. ONE+ by Rocket Mortgage offers a $7,000 grant (no repayment) for eligible buyers purchasing at or under $350,000. WSHFC Home Advantage covers purchases at any price point and serves households earning up to $180,000, delivering 4–5% of the loan amount as a deferred second mortgage.

What is the income limit for Washington Home Advantage?

WSHFC Home Advantage carries an income limit of up to $180,000 for most Washington counties, including Skagit. This makes it accessible to a wide range of working households, including dual-income couples who would be disqualified from most need-based programs. There is no first-time buyer requirement, and the program is compatible with conventional, FHA, VA, and USDA loans.

What is the difference between ONE+ and WSHFC DPA?

The structural difference is repayment. ONE+ delivers its 2% contribution as a true grant — it is never repaid, never shows up as a lien, and has no impact on proceeds when the home is sold. WSHFC programs deliver assistance as deferred second mortgages that are repaid when the home is sold or refinanced. Both solve the same cash-to-close problem on day one, but ONE+ costs the buyer nothing on the back end. For buyers ONE+ fits, it is the better deal. For buyers above the $350,000 loan ceiling or outside the income limit, WSHFC Home Advantage is the next-best option in Washington.