Program 1: Florida Hometown Heroes for nurses
Healthcare workers are squarely on the Hometown Heroes eligible-occupations list. RN, LPN, CNA, respiratory therapist, surgical tech, medical assistant, dental hygienist, and many allied health roles all qualify when employed full-time (35+ hours per week) by a Florida-based employer.[1]
The benefit: 5% of the first mortgage loan amount — minimum $10,000, maximum $35,000 — in down payment and closing-cost assistance,[2] structured as a 0%-interest, non-amortizing, deferred 30-year second mortgage. No monthly payments and no interest. Repayment is deferred until you sell, refinance, transfer title, or stop using the property as your primary residence.[3]
Eligibility:
- Full-time employment with a Florida-based healthcare employer.
- First-time homebuyer (no primary-residence ownership in past 3 years). Veterans are exempt. A nurse who served in the Navy or Army Nurse Corps does not need to be a first-time buyer.
- Qualifying income at or below the county limit — for Duval County in 2026, $163,050 in borrower income under the TBA program, effective with reservations as of May 6, 2026.[4]
- 640 minimum middle credit score.
- Home will be your primary residence within 60 days of closing.
- HUD-approved homebuyer education completed before closing.
Funding status, August 2026: the Legislature allocated $50 million and the program reopened for reservations on July 13, 2026, first-come, first-served — Florida Housing projects roughly 7–8 months of funding, but prior rounds have gone faster, so get pre-approved early.[5] Full mechanics, application steps, and the eligible-occupations list are in the dedicated Florida Hometown Heroes guide.
Major Northeast Florida healthcare employers
Lenders treat the following Jacksonville-area employers as stable, low-risk W-2 sources. Verification of Employment turnaround is generally 1-3 business days at all of them:
- Mayo Clinic Jacksonville — San Pablo Road. One of the strongest W-2 employer relationships in Northeast Florida; lenders treat Mayo employment as gold-standard.
- Baptist Health — Downtown, Beaches, South, Nassau, Clay (Wolfson Children's, Baptist Heart). Largest healthcare system in the region.
- Ascension St. Vincent's — Riverside, Southside, Clay County campuses.
- UF Health Jacksonville — Downtown (Level I trauma) and North campus.
- HCA Florida — Memorial Hospital (Beaches), Orange Park, Putnam, and the broader HCA NE Florida network.
- Brooks Rehabilitation — Southpoint, Bartram, Magnolia (long-term acute care and outpatient).
- Naval Hospital Jacksonville — civilian healthcare staff (GS-rated federal employees) and dependents. Federal civilian W-2 is one of the cleanest lender files in Jacksonville.
Travel nurse income — possible, but documentation-heavy
Travel nursing pay packages typically split between taxable hourly wages and non-taxable stipends (lodging, meals, incidentals). The non-taxable portion is the lender problem.
Three common scenarios:
- W-2 travel nurse (agency-employed): Most lenders count taxable W-2 wages with a 24-month earnings history. The non-taxable stipend portion can sometimes be added back as qualifying income if it has been consistent and the lender uses Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac guidelines that permit "grossing up" non-taxable income. Not all lenders allow this — shop the file.
- 1099 / self-employed travel nurse: Need two full years of tax returns. Lenders calculate income off Schedule C net profit (gross minus expenses) plus depreciation add-back. Travel nurses with heavy mileage and meal write-offs sometimes have lower "qualifying" income than actual take-home — bank statement loans become the alternative.
- Travel nurse settling down — first staff job in Jacksonville: Bring the offer letter and your last 24 months of travel pay history. Lenders increasingly accept the transition if the new role pays roughly the same or more, and your contract starts within 60-90 days of closing.
Bank statement loans — the travel-nurse and 1099 backstop
A bank statement loan is a non-QM (non-qualified) mortgage that qualifies you off 12-24 months of bank statement deposits rather than W-2s and tax returns. It is useful for:
- Travel nurses with heavy non-taxable stipend income
- Per-diem nurses with inconsistent hours and irregular W-2 reporting
- 1099 contract nurses with significant tax write-offs that crush qualifying income
- Recently retired nurses with rental income or business income that does not fit conventional underwriting
What to expect: rates typically 0.75-1.5% above conventional, 15-20% down required, 660+ credit. The program closes deals that traditional QM loans cannot. Confirm with the lender that bank statement loans are still being originated — they fall in and out of favor with secondary-market buyers.
W-2 versus 1099 income treatment
The single biggest factor in a nurse mortgage file is whether your income arrives as W-2 or 1099. The rules:
| Income type | Documentation | How underwriter calculates |
|---|---|---|
| W-2 staff RN at hospital | 2 years W-2, 30 days pay stubs, VOE | Base × 2080 hours + 24-month average differentials, OT, bonus |
| W-2 travel nurse (agency) | 2 years W-2, 30 days pay stubs, current contract | 2-year average of taxable income; non-taxable stipend sometimes added back |
| 1099 travel nurse (self-employed) | 2 years tax returns with all schedules, YTD P&L | Schedule C net profit averaged over 2 years |
| Per-diem nurse (W-2, variable hours) | 2 years W-2, full pay history | 2-year average; lender may haircut if hours are trending down |
| Mixed (staff W-2 + per-diem) | Both sets of documentation | Each treated separately, then added |
Mortgage Credit Certificate — $2,000/year tax credit
The Florida Housing MCC produces a federal income tax credit of up to $2,000 per year for the life of the loan, as long as the home remains the primary residence.[6] It pairs with conventional, FHA, VA, and USDA first mortgages, and stacks with Hometown Heroes assistance. You file IRS Form 8396 with your federal return.[9] Over a 30-year loan, that is up to $60,000 in tax savings — meaningful, and frequently missed by nurse buyers who close without it.
FHA versus Conventional for nurses
| Factor | FHA | Conventional 97 / HFA Preferred |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum down payment | 3.5% | 3% (Conv 97 / HFA Preferred) |
| Minimum credit score | 580 (3.5% down) | 640+ typical (HFA), 620+ Conv 97 |
| Mortgage insurance | MIP for life of loan (most cases) | PMI cancellable at 80% LTV; HFA Preferred has reduced PMI |
| Income limits | None on FHA itself | HFA Preferred has income limits |
| Loan limits (2026) | $580,750 (1-unit, Duval County)[10] | $832,750 (1-unit, Florida conforming)[10] |
| Best for | Lower credit; first-time buyer with limited reserves | 700+ credit nurse with 5%+ saved; faster MI removal |
For most nurse buyers, the right answer is Conventional HFA Preferred if your credit is 700+, FHA otherwise. Both pair with Hometown Heroes and MCC. The FHA Loans in Northeast Florida guide covers the FHA mechanics in detail.
Compact-license nurses moving here from out of state
Florida is a participating state in the Nurse Licensure Compact (eNLC). If you hold a compact-state multi-state license, you can practice in Florida immediately upon establishing Florida residency.[7][8] If you hold a single-state license in a non-compact state, you need to convert by endorsement before practicing.
The mortgage timing piece:
- Get the job first. Lenders need a Jacksonville-area W-2 employer relationship to underwrite. An offer letter from Mayo, Baptist, UF Health, etc., is enough.
- Start pre-approval as soon as the offer is signed. Provide the offer letter, two years of W-2s from your previous employer, most recent pay stubs, and bank statements.
- Time the closing to your start date. Lenders can use the offer letter as proof of future income if the start date is within 60-90 days of closing and your first paystub will arrive before the loan funds.
- Establish Florida residency for the compact license transition. Florida driver license, voter registration, and the new mailing address all need to be in place; the Board of Nursing handles the compact-residency notification.
- Hometown Heroes still applies as long as you are working at a Florida-based employer at closing.
Stacking programs — how to combine them
| Scenario | First mortgage | Assistance | Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|
| BSN starting at Mayo or Baptist, first home | Conventional HFA Preferred | Hometown Heroes ($35K) | MCC tax credit |
| Veteran RN (Army or Navy Nurse Corps) | VA ($0 down) | Hometown Heroes (closing costs) | MCC tax credit |
| CNA with 620 credit, limited reserves | FHA (3.5% down) | Hometown Heroes ($35K) | MCC tax credit |
| Travel nurse settling into staff job | Conventional or FHA | Hometown Heroes when staff role is full-time | MCC tax credit |
| 1099 contract nurse with heavy write-offs | Bank statement (non-QM) | Not eligible for Hometown Heroes on non-QM | — |
| Nurse over Hometown Heroes income cap | Conventional | — | MCC if eligible |
What I do as your agent
I have been writing FHA, conventional, and VA contracts for Jacksonville nurses for nearly 30 years. My role is to (1) match you with a Hometown Heroes lender who knows how to underwrite a nurse file — including shift differentials, per-diem hours, and travel-nurse stipends, (2) help you choose the right first mortgage for your pay structure, (3) write your offer with timing that allows for the documentation a healthcare W-2 sometimes needs, and (4) stay coordinated with your hospital HR on Verification of Employment turnaround. You take care of patients. Let me take care of the file.