CaliLoanPro — Real Estate & Mortgage SolutionsChris Johnson · Affinity Mortgage
Service Area · Santa Clara, CA

Meet Your Santa Clara Mortgage Broker

One of the few Santa Clara County markets where FHA, conventional, and jumbo genuinely compete — matched to your specific home, not a default assumption.

Santa Clara offers something increasingly rare in this county: a real mix of financing paths. Depending on the home and neighborhood, buyers here might use FHA, VA, standard conventional, or jumbo financing — not just jumbo by default. I've spent 30+ years arranging loans across Santa Clara County, and matching buyers here with the right program, rather than assuming jumbo is the only option, is exactly where a broker's range matters.

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A market with more financing options

The 2026 baseline conforming loan limit is $832,750, but Santa Clara County is a federally designated high-cost area, which raises the limit here to $1,249,125 for both conforming and FHA financing on a one-unit property — loans above that are what actually qualify as jumbo in this county. With typical Santa Clara home values around $1.6M, many purchases still exceed that limit and require jumbo financing — but a meaningful share, especially condos, townhomes, and more modest single-family homes, fall within FHA or standard conventional territory.

That range means the right loan program for a Santa Clara buyer genuinely depends on the specific home and situation, rather than defaulting to jumbo the way it does in some neighboring cities.

Loan programs Santa Clara buyers use most

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Santa Clara's Below Market Purchase (BMP) Program

The City of Santa Clara has operated its own Below Market Purchase (BMP) Program since 1995 — one of the longer-running local affordable homeownership programs in the county — currently administered by Hello Housing. Under the City's Inclusionary Housing Policy, developments of 10 or more for-sale units must include at least 10% of units priced for moderate-income households.

Rather than a fixed annual waitlist, the program maintains a general interest list and notifies applicants when specific BMP units become available for a lottery-based sale. Eligible buyers are typically first-time homebuyers (or haven't owned in the past 3 years), with a minimum 3% down payment and a 20-year owner-occupancy and resale restriction on the unit. It's a genuinely active program — worth signing up for the interest list even if nothing is available right now.

Local, not corporate

I'm based in Campbell — a short drive from Santa Clara — and I've built relationships with the appraisers, agents, and escrow officers who work this market regularly. Because Santa Clara spans a wider range of loan types than some neighboring cities, having a broker who can move fluidly between FHA, conventional, and jumbo — rather than one who only specializes in jumbo — genuinely matters here.

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Frequently asked questions

Not always — it depends on the home. With the 2026 high-balance conforming loan limit for Santa Clara County at $1,249,125 and typical Santa Clara home values around $1.6M, many purchases do require jumbo financing, but condos, townhomes, and more modestly priced single-family homes can often qualify for FHA or standard conventional loans instead.

It depends on the loan type. FHA loans require a 580 minimum. Conventional loans start around 620, though 740 or higher gets the best pricing. If jumbo financing is needed for a specific home, most programs want 700+, with the best rates at 740-760 or higher.

Yes — the City of Santa Clara has run its own Below Market Purchase (BMP) Program since 1995, currently administered by Hello Housing. It offers below-market-priced units in qualifying new developments to income-eligible first-time buyers, with a general interest list rather than a fixed annual application window.

Typically within 24 hours once Chris has your documents. Because Santa Clara buyers may end up in FHA, conventional, or jumbo financing depending on the specific home, getting pre-approved across the right program early helps you move confidently once you find a home.

Matching the right loan program to the specific home matters as much as speed here. A pre-approval correctly matched to FHA, conventional, or jumbo gives sellers and listing agents more confidence than a mismatched or overly conservative pre-approval would.

Yes. Loans under $832,750 get standard conforming pricing, with down payments as low as 3%. Loans between $832,750 and $1,249,125 are "high-balance" conforming loans — still far more favorable than jumbo financing, but they typically carry slightly higher rates and tighter guidelines, with a minimum 5% down payment. If your target price is close to $832,750, it's worth a quick conversation about whether structuring your down payment to land under that threshold could save you money.