A Utah Housing participating lender who tells you straight.
This site exists to make Utah's down payment assistance easy to understand. Mike Certo is a Branch Manager and licensed loan officer with Cornerstone First Mortgage, a Utah Housing participating lender. He originates the UHC first mortgage and the DPA Second directly, this isn't a lead-referral directory.
Why this site exists
Search "down payment assistance in Utah" and you'll find pages that call the UHC DPA a "grant" or miss that repeat buyers qualify. We keep this site current to the actual Utah Housing rules, the Traditional and Deferred DPA options, the $27,500 cap, the 660/620 credit floors, and the county income limits, and we're clear that the DPA Second is a repayable loan. It's a strong program for a lot of Utah buyers, and when it isn't the right fit, we say so.
What we do
- Originate UHC loans directly, FirstHome, FHA/VA, and HFA Advantage, plus the DPA Second.
- Match the option to your situation, first-time vs repeat, Traditional vs Deferred, plus veteran and law-enforcement grants.
- Serve Utah statewide, Salt Lake, Utah County, Davis and Weber, Washington County, and beyond.
- Give honest tradeoff advice, including when saving your own down payment beats taking the second.
Cornerstone First Mortgage
Cornerstone First Mortgage, LLC (NMLS #173855) is a national mortgage lender. Mike Certo (NMLS #260555) runs the branch behind this site. Reach him at (480) 296-6513 or mcerto@cfmtg.com.