You state they "own" an apartment,or did you mean rent? Since they have little savings, your help may not even work, as they would likely need 20% down,or 60k...Even if they were able to get a mortgage with 5% down, that is still 30k,plus closing costs...

The best thing to do, I think, would be to get them to sit down with a good loan officer & find out if it's workable.

I wish you all the best.

NO not a good idea. Without savings etc, going back to work, baby sitting etc. I would suggest waiting and not borrow from relatives.

Please don't encourage anyone to buy anything unless they really have a lot of money to work with - a return to 2008 disasters is not a great idea!

That's put pretty bluntly, but it's an honest answer, especially if they're not able to save money in the situation they're in now. Ditto what Sylvia says.......their first action should be to talk to a loan officer. Even if the down payment came flying at them like pennies from heaven, they still have to live with that obligation for a looooooong time. And in today's economy, I'd be erring on the side of conservative about buying a house requiring a double income. One of my children and their spouse were pre-approved for buying a home considerably more expensive than the one they choose as their first home. That was three years ago, and he was laid off six months ago. Thankfully they can still afford their house payments on her income alone. That's called being able to sleep nights.

If they don't have any savings, it isn't time to buy a home. Home ownership brings risks. Sooner or later, something is going to break and they will need to fix it. That might be $200 for a plumber or $5,000 for a new furnace. If they don't have enough savings to cover that, they could get themselves in major financial trouble.

If they are headstrong and going to do it anyway, tell them to go to google "FHA Loans" and go to the first link to the HUD website. Read up on the general requirements and then scroll down to find FHA lenders in their area. Typically, they can get a FHA loan for only 3.5% down and they can roll some of the closing costs into the loan. On a 300k house, that mean they will still need to come up with 12k+.

Just because she expects to return to work next fall - it doesn't mean that she will be able to find a job quickly.

Oceanbaby, are you considering something like gifting them the down payment or co-signing the mortgage note? Or are you just trying to help by providing information?

Thanks everyone for your thoughtful responses. In talking about it with my niece over the holidays we've realized it's wishful thinking and she's not going to pursue any further. She said she has a lot to be thankful for so she's taking your advice and they will stay put. Hopefully down the road their circumstances will change. Thanks again.

And if she does get a job, they can start saving for that down payment.