How to Qualify for an OPAL Home
1. Income eligible.
To be eligible to purchase an OPAL home your gross household income is $165,000 or less annually.
Each OPAL home uses different funding sources to make it affordable, therefore there are different income requirements depending on which home you purchase. The majority of our homes are limited to those earning 80% of Area Median Income (AMI) or less for San Juan County. A limited number of homes are also available to those earning up to 115% AMI, and to those earning up to $165,000. (See charts below for AMI amounts.)
80% of Area Median Income (AMI) is:
Household Size |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Income |
$56,850 |
$65,000 |
$73,100 |
$81,200 |
$87,700 |
115% of Area Median Income (AMI) is:
Household Size |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
Income |
$81,765 |
$93,380 |
$105,110 |
$116,725 |
$126,040 |
HUD 2024
2. A San Juan County resident.
You must be a resident and you must have lived in San Juan County for at least one year preceding the date of application or be employed by or have an employment contract with a San Juan County employer. In order to qualify for a mortgage, you will need to demonstrate that you can earn a living on island.
3. Asset eligible.
You must have a minimum of $1,000 in personal assets to qualify to purchase an OPAL home. This includes all checking, savings and investment accounts. Retirement assets include any funds in an IRS designated retirement account such as a 401(K), 403(b) or IRA. Additionally, please note that you cannot buy an OPAL home if you already own a house property.
Your total assets may not exceed the following amounts:
2024 Asset Limits (under 62 years of age):
Personal Net Assets – $306,000
Retirement Assets – $459,000
2024 Asset Limits (62+ years of age):
Total Personal and Retirement Assets – $765,000
4. Able to qualify for an approved mortgage.
You need to be able to qualify for an approved mortgage to purchase your home or have adequate assets to purchase it outright. This includes:
- Adequate income – You must be able to document adequate, steady income so that your house payment does not exceed approximately one-third of your gross monthly income.
- Adequate credit – Generally you will be able to get a loan to purchase your home if your credit score is at least 640. If your credit score is lower than 640 or you do not have a score, it is still possible to purchase a home if you can document at least forms of non-reported credit, such as utility bills, landlord references, etc.
- Minimum debt – Your total debt payments, including your future house payment, may not exceed 41% to 44% of your gross monthly income, depending on your mortgage. OPAL’s housing manager can help you calculate this. Generally speaking, monthly debt obligations of more than $200 to $250 per month, in addition to your house payment, make it difficult to qualify.