First Place ended on 12/31/2023 — here is what replaced it
Program and regulatory figures verified October 5, 2026. Details change; confirm your scenario with us.
Program status is the fastest-ageing fact in down payment assistance, and First Place is the clearest Indiana example. It is still being advertised across the web as something you can apply for.
How do we know First Place ended?
Because IHCDA wrote the date down. Its current Homeownership Program Guide, footer-dated 02/2026, describes the Next Step refinance as being for "individuals who are currently participating in either the First Place (ended 12/31/2023), First Step, or the Step Down program."
That parenthesis is the whole proof, and it comes from the operator rather than a news story or a secondary summary. It is corroborated by where the First Place documents now live: IHCDA's programs page lists four current programmes, and the First Place Conventional and First Place FHA guides sit below an Archive heading with the rest of the retired material.
What took its place?
First Step, which occupies the same slot: bond-funded, first-time buyer, down payment assistance attached to a 30-year fixed first mortgage.
| First Place (ended 12/31/2023) | First Step (current) | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Ended | Available |
| Assistance | — | 5% of purchase price |
| First-time buyer | — | Yes, unless targeted tract or military status |
| Forgiveness | — | Non-forgivable |
| Recapture | — | Yes, bond funded |
We are not publishing First Place's old terms. It cannot be applied for, so the only number that matters is the date it stopped. The four current programmes.
I already have a First Place loan. What now?
Nothing changes about your existing mortgage — a programme closing to new applicants does not touch loans already closed. Your second mortgage keeps its original terms, and those terms are non-forgivable, so it still becomes due on sale, refinance, HELOC or loss of primary residence.
IHCDA kept a route open for you specifically. Next Step is a one-time refinance for existing First Place, First Step and Step Down borrowers, and it lets you apply for a new assistance second matching your current IHCDA lien amount rather than paying the old one off out of pocket. How Next Step works.
What about the Indiana Mortgage Credit Certificate?
Treat it the same way: not among the current programmes. The only two IHCDA program guides that include an MCC are the Next Home FHA guide dated 12/20/2022 and the Next Home Conventional guide dated 8/15/2023, and both now sit under the Archive heading alongside First Place.
We are stating what IHCDA's own page shows rather than announcing a discontinuation date, because IHCDA has not published one. If an MCC is central to your plan, that is a question to put to IHCDA directly before you write an offer.
Why does a dead programme still matter?
Because buyers plan around it. Someone reads that Indiana offers first-time buyers a grant, works out that it covers their down payment and most of their closing costs, and starts looking at houses on that basis. The correction lands at application, which is the worst possible moment.
Dates are the part of this subject that goes stale fastest, so every programme figure on this site carries the document and the date it came from. The full Indiana guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is the IHCDA First Place program still available?
No. First Place ended on 12/31/2023. IHCDA states the date in its own current Homeownership Program Guide dated 02/2026, in the description of the Next Step refinance program, and the First Place program guides now appear only under the Archive heading on IHCDA's programs page.What replaced First Place in Indiana?
First Step, which provides 5% of the purchase price as non-forgivable down payment assistance to first-time homebuyers, with the first-time requirement waived in a HUD-designated targeted census tract or for an applicant with verifiable military status.I have a First Place loan — does it still exist?
Yes. A program closing to new applicants does not change loans already closed. First Place second mortgages remain non-forgivable and become due on sale, refinance, HELOC or loss of primary residence. IHCDA's Next Step program is a one-time refinance built for existing First Place, First Step and Step Down borrowers.Does Indiana still offer a Mortgage Credit Certificate?
The MCC is not among IHCDA's four current programs. The only program guides that include one, Next Home FHA dated 12/20/2022 and Next Home Conventional dated 8/15/2023, appear under the Archive heading on IHCDA's programs page. IHCDA has not published a discontinuation date, so confirm directly with IHCDA if an MCC is central to your plan.Mike Certo · NMLS #260555 · Cornerstone First Mortgage NMLS #173855 · Equal Housing Lender. Educational content about financing, not a loan commitment and not legal or tax advice. IHCDA program terms, income limits and acquisition limits are set by the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority and change; figures here carry the date we verified them against IHCDA's published documents. IHCDA down payment assistance is a non-forgivable second mortgage repayable in full, not a grant. Federal recapture tax may apply on bond-funded loans; consult a tax advisor. Loans are subject to borrower and property qualification.