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Chris Jennings

Former Editor, Home Lending
Ribbon Icon EXPERTISE
  • Mortgages
  • First-time homebuying
  • Housing market
  • Mortgage rate trends
  • Home improvement
Education Icon EDUCATION
  • Bachelor of Arts in English from Illinois State University

About the author
Chris Jennings is a former editor for Bankrate’s Home Lending team. He has been writing and editing about mortgages and personal finance since 2016. He enjoys simplifying complex mortgage topics for first-time homebuyers and homeowners alike. Before joining Bankrate, he was an editor at Forbes Advisor, Credible, and GOBankingRates. His work has appeared on Fox Business, MSN, and Yahoo Finance. He graduated from Illinois State University with a Bachelor of Arts in English.

Chris lives in Los Angeles with his wife and dog. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, watching movies, and playing golf.
Chris wants you to know
Saving for a down payment and buying a home in today’s market might seem daunting, especially if you’re a first-time homebuyer. Many first-time buyers believe they need to put down 20% to get into a home. That’s not true. While a 20% down payment is a good target to aim for, many qualified homebuyers can receive a mortgage with as little as 3% down. Depending on your loan, you may need to pay some form of mortgage insurance, but this can be worth it as it gets you into a home sooner.

If you’re a first-time homebuyer, you have even more options at your disposal. Check out your local and state housing authorities. Many of these organizations have programs that provide fixed-interest rate loans tailored to first-time homebuyers, down payment and closing cost assistance and mortgage credit certificates (MCCs), among other resources. Some private lenders even offer their own first-time homebuyer assistance programs.

Chris's latest articles