If you are a first-time buyer on Staten Island in 2026 and you have not stacked up the grant programs available to you, you are very likely leaving between $20,000 and $100,000+ in free or forgivable money on the table. The City, the State, the federal government, your bank, and even some employers all run grants, forgivable second mortgages, closing-cost subsidies, and down-payment match programs that specifically target Staten Island zip codes. This is the 2026 walk-through of the ones that actually fund and close — and how to layer them so you keep more cash in the bank on Day 1.

Run your numbers first with the team’s first-time buyer grant calculator, then take this list to your loan officer and your buyer’s agent. There is a paired Brooklyn version of this article here.

What is the SONYMA HomeFirst grant on Staten Island?

The City of New York’s HomeFirst Down Payment Assistance Program is the single most underused grant for Staten Island buyers. Eligible buyers can receive up to $100,000 toward down payment or closing costs on a one-to-four-family home, condo, or co-op anywhere in the five boroughs — including Staten Island zip codes 10301 through 10314. The funds are structured as a forgivable loan that disappears after 10 to 15 years of owner-occupancy. Income limits scale by household size and currently sit at roughly 80% of NYC Area Median Income. To qualify, you must complete an HPD-approved homebuyer education course, contribute at least 1% of the purchase price from your own funds, and use a participating lender. Run the calculator first to see if you clear the income threshold for your household size.

How does SONYMA Achieving the Dream stack with HomeFirst?

SONYMA — the State of New York Mortgage Agency — runs Achieving the Dream, a below-market interest rate mortgage program that pairs cleanly with HomeFirst on Staten Island. Achieving the Dream offers fixed 30-year financing with as little as 3% down and a Down Payment Assistance Loan (DPAL) of up to $15,000 or 3% of the home price, whichever is greater, fully forgiven after 10 years. Eligible buyers in St. George, Stapleton, Tompkinsville, and Port Richmond can layer the SONYMA DPAL on top of HomeFirst — that is the configuration that pushes total assistance past $100,000 in some cases. You must purchase below SONYMA’s 1-unit purchase price limit (currently around $819,000 in non-target areas of Staten Island and higher in target areas) and complete homebuyer education.

Are there grants for veterans buying on Staten Island?

Yes — and Staten Island has the highest concentration of veterans in NYC, so this is a critical conversation. The federal VA loan requires zero down and no PMI, and SONYMA runs a Homes for Veterans Program that pairs the VA loan with the same DPAL described above. Veterans buying in Staten Island also qualify for the city’s HomeFirst program on the same terms as non-veterans, meaning the right configuration is: VA loan (0% down) + SONYMA DPAL (up to $15K) + HomeFirst (up to $100K) — closing costs and most of the down payment covered. See the team’s guide for Staten Island veteran buyers for the full layering walkthrough.

Do banks have their own first-time buyer grants on Staten Island?

Yes, and these are the grants most buyers do not know about. Chase runs the Chase Homebuyer Grant — currently $5,000 to $7,500 in eligible Staten Island census tracts, applied directly to closing costs and rate buydown. Bank of America runs America’s Home Grant — up to $7,500 in non-repayable closing-cost grant — plus a separate Down Payment Grant of up to $10,000 in eligible neighborhoods. Wells Fargo runs the Dream Plan Home program, and TD Bank runs the Right Step program. None of these grants ask you to repay them. They are bank-funded marketing programs designed to win first-time buyer business, and they stack on top of city and state grants. The trick is to find a lender who participates in multiple programs and is willing to write the file at SONYMA standards.

How do I actually layer these grants without losing one?

Most first-time buyers lose grants because they sequence the application wrong. The correct order on Staten Island in 2026 is: (1) complete an HPD-approved homebuyer education course early — this is the gating credential, (2) get pre-approved by a lender that participates in SONYMA, FHA, VA, AND a major bank-grant program, (3) submit your HomeFirst application before you write an offer, (4) write offers with longer timelines (45–60 days) so the city has time to fund the grant, and (5) confirm with your buyer’s agent that the seller’s attorney has done a HomeFirst-funded deal before. The order matters because some grants are first-come-first-served annually and run out by Q3.

How much can I actually save? Run the numbers.

For a Staten Island couple buying a $625,000 semi-attached in Eltingville with combined income of $135,000, the realistic 2026 stack looks like this: HomeFirst funds $40,000 toward down payment, SONYMA DPAL adds $15,000, Chase Homebuyer Grant adds $5,000 toward closing costs, and the federal first-time-buyer mortgage interest deduction returns roughly $4,000 in Year 1 taxes. Total Day 1 cost reduction: roughly $60,000. That is the difference between buying in 2026 and waiting another five years. Use the first-time buyer grant calculator to run your specific numbers, then call Joseph at (917) 905-2541 to map your stack. There is also an SI first-time-buyer agent guide that walks through the full purchase process.