Florida home loans, from Hometown Heroes down payment help to Miami and Tampa jumbo lending.
Florida-licensed lending across Miami-Dade, Broward, Hillsborough, Orange, and Duval counties. Straight numbers on FHFC Hometown Heroes, Florida Assist, and HFA Preferred. A Cornerstone branch manager who closes the complex Florida files instead of handing them off.
Program figures verified July 2026, details change; confirm your scenario with us.
A Florida-licensed team fluent in the FHFC Hometown Heroes second and the county HFA menu from Jacksonville to Naples.
Straight math on Florida Assist, FL HLP, and HFA Preferred. No script. We say so when a Miami-Dade DPA second is the wrong move for your file.
A first-time buyer in Orlando, a self-employed borrower in Fort Lauderdale, a jumbo file in Naples, a Cape Coral short-term-rental investor, or a Tampa move-up. We cover the full Florida toolbox.
Mike and his Florida-licensed loan officers work every Hillsborough, Duval, and Orange County file directly. No handoffs. You always know where your closing stands.
Pick the Florida path that fits your situation.
Each guide goes deep on one type of Florida buyer, from a Hometown Heroes first-timer in Hillsborough County to a jumbo file in Palm Beach. Land directly on the answers that matter to you.
Down Payment Assistance
FHFC Hometown Heroes, HFA Preferred and HFA Advantage PLUS, plus Chenoa, Arrive, and Essex. The full Florida DPA menu. Hometown Heroes, Florida Assist, and Salute Our Soldiers, explained simply.
See Florida DPA details →Buy Before You Sell
Bridge financing that removes the sale contingency so a move-up buyer in Sarasota or St. Petersburg can buy before the current home sells. Florida listing agents call this the deal-saver.
See BBYS details →Self-Employed Loans
Bank statement, 1099, and asset-qualifier paths for Florida's self-employed. Qualify on what your Miami or Orlando business actually earns, not the number left after Schedule C deductions.
See Self-Employed details →Jumbo & Doctor Loans
Above $832,750 in most Florida counties (or $990,150 in Monroe County/the Keys) a loan turns jumbo. Full doc, alt doc, super jumbo, plus the Medical Professionals program: up to 100% LTV, no PMI, FICO 680, residents and fellows eligible 150 days pre-start.
See Jumbo / Doctor details →Investor & DSCR Loans
DSCR loans that finance below a 1.0 ratio; sub-1.0 programs sit on our investor menu. Short-term-rental and standard rental options built for Florida vacation markets like Orlando, Cape Coral, and the Gulf coast.
See Investor / DSCR details →First-Time Home Buyer Loans
FHA, USDA, and Conventional 97 with low down payment, plus FHFC Hometown Heroes, Florida Assist, FL HLP, and HFA Preferred / Advantage PLUS structures. Designed for the Miami, Tampa, and Jacksonville buyer with real-life income and credit, not perfect-paper applicants.
See First-Time Buyer details →A licensed Florida loan officer, not a call-center voice.
Mike Certo is the Branch Manager of Cornerstone First Mortgage's Florida-licensed branch. He leads a team of seasoned Florida-licensed loan officers and works directly with the buyer and the agent through closing, whether the file sits in Miami-Dade, Orange, or Duval County. No junior LO running your Broward or Hillsborough County file behind the scenes. No handoffs in the middle of a Florida escrow.
What you get when you work with Mike:
- Direct line. A real cell phone and real return calls within hours, not days.
- Real numbers. Honest math on which Florida program fits, from Hometown Heroes to HFA Preferred, including when a DPA second is the wrong move.
- Files that close. Mike specializes in the complex Florida deals: bank-statement income, CCBS contingency removal, jumbo above the $832,750 county limit with student debt, and investors scaling across multiple counties.
Common questions.
Why does FL Loan Experts have multiple websites?
Each Florida lending niche has its own questions and audience. We built dedicated guides for Hometown Heroes down payment assistance, buy-before-you-sell bridge financing, self-employed loans, jumbo, DSCR investor, and first-time-buyer paths so each set of Florida buyers can land directly on the answers that matter to them. FL Loan Experts is the brand parent linking them all.
What kind of borrowers do you typically work with?
First-time buyers using Florida down payment assistance like Hometown Heroes and Florida Assist, self-employed borrowers around Miami and Orlando who need bank-statement or 1099 loans, jumbo borrowers including doctors above the $832,750 county limit, Cape Coral and Gulf-coast investors using DSCR for rental properties, and move-up buyers who need bridge financing to remove the contingency from their offers.
Do you work with real estate agents?
Yes, complex Florida files are our specialty. Listing agents in Tampa, Jacksonville, and Fort Lauderdale bring us their CCBS files (contract contingent on buyer sale) so we can provide bridge financing that removes the contingency. Buyer agents bring us self-employed, complex-doc, or unusual-property files. Visit the For Agents page for the full referral playbook.
What's the fastest way to find out if you can help me?
Call (480) 296-6513 and ask for Mike. Or send your scenario through the contact form. Our team calls you back shortly. Pre-approval typically takes 24-48 hours after credit + income docs are in.
Ready when you are.
Get pre-approved in 24-48 hours, or talk to Mike first to figure out which path fits.