Yes, green card holders can buy a house in the United States, and they can do it on the same terms as U.S. citizens. Every major mortgage program — FHA, conventional, USDA, and VA — treats lawful permanent residents as eligible borrowers with the same requirements applied to citizens. The extras are practical, not legal: a bit more documentation around your status, and some planning if your down payment is sitting in a foreign bank account.
No federal law restricts permanent residents from purchasing, owning, or selling U.S. real estate. Several states have recently passed laws limiting property purchases by certain foreign nationals, and those laws specifically exclude lawful permanent residents. Florida’s 2023 law, for example, defines the restricted group as individuals who are neither U.S. citizens nor lawful permanent residents, so green card holders are not covered.1Congress.gov. State Regulation of Foreign Ownership of U.S. Land
One boundary worth stating upfront: buying property does not improve your immigration status. It won’t help you get a green card if you don’t already have one, and it won’t accelerate naturalization. This is a financial decision.
Mortgage Programs Open to Permanent Residents
The major loan programs all take permanent residents, and each has its own structure.
Conventional Loans
Fannie Mae buys and securitizes mortgages made to lawful permanent residents “under the same terms that are available to U.S. citizens.”2Fannie Mae. Non-U.S. Citizen Borrower Eligibility Requirements The lender verifies your status with documentation it considers appropriate, typically your green card, and represents to Fannie Mae that you’re legally present. Freddie Mac takes a similar approach. Conventional loans generally require a 3% to 5% minimum down payment and reward stronger credit scores with better rates.
FHA Loans
The Federal Housing Administration insures mortgages for permanent residents under the same requirements as citizens.3U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Title I Letter 490 – Revisions to Residency Requirements FHA loans are popular with first-time buyers: down payments as low as 3.5% with a credit score of 580 or higher, and 10% down for scores between 500 and 579. The trade-off is mortgage insurance premiums that stay in place for the life of the loan in most cases.
USDA Rural Development Loans
If you’re buying in an eligible rural area, USDA guaranteed loans are open to lawful permanent residents. You’ll provide Form I-551 as proof of status.4U.S. Department of Agriculture. Eligibility for Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program USDA loans offer zero-down financing and competitive rates, so they’re worth checking if the location qualifies.
VA Home Loans
Green card holders who have served in the U.S. military may qualify for VA-backed home loans, which offer zero down payment and no private mortgage insurance. Eligibility depends on meeting the same active-duty service requirements as citizen veterans, and you’ll need a Certificate of Eligibility from the VA to proceed.
What Lenders Actually Evaluate
Lenders assess green card holders using the same financial criteria as any borrower. Your status determines which box you check on the application; it doesn’t change the underwriting math. The core factors:
- Income and employment. Most lenders want at least two years of U.S.-based employment history. Expect to provide pay stubs, W-2 forms, and employer verification letters.
- Debt-to-income ratio. Total monthly debt payments divided by gross monthly income. Most programs cap this around 43%, though FHA can go higher in some cases.
- Credit score. Higher scores unlock better rates and lower down payments. This is where many newer permanent residents run into trouble.
- Available funds. Enough for the down payment, closing costs of roughly 2% to 5% of the purchase price, and some reserves after closing.
Building U.S. Credit If You Arrived Recently
If you’ve been in the U.S. only a short time, a thin credit file is likely your biggest obstacle, not your status. Foreign credit history generally doesn’t transfer to U.S. credit bureaus, so an excellent score in your home country doesn’t carry over.
Start building credit as soon as you have a Social Security number. A secured credit card is the easiest entry point: you deposit cash as collateral, use the card for small purchases, and pay the balance in full each month. An auto loan, or being added as an authorized user on a trusted person’s account, also helps. Most lenders want to see at least 12 months of U.S. credit activity before they’ll seriously consider a mortgage application, and two years of history puts you in a much stronger position.
Documents You’ll Need
The paperwork overlaps heavily with what any buyer provides, plus a few status-specific items:
- Form I-551 (your green card) as primary proof of permanent resident status.
- Social Security card and number.
- Two years of federal tax returns (Form 1040).
- Recent pay stubs, usually covering the last 30 days, and W-2 forms for the last two years.
- Employment verification letters from current and past employers, confirming position and salary.
- Bank statements, typically the last two to three months, showing funds for down payment and closing costs.
- A government-issued photo ID such as a driver’s license or state ID.
If Your Green Card Has Expired
An expired physical card does not mean your permanent resident status has lapsed. If you’ve filed Form I-90 to renew, USCIS issues a receipt notice that extends your status. You can also request a temporary I-551 stamp (the ADIT stamp) in your passport, which serves as official proof of permanent resident status for up to one year.5U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Announces Additional Mail Delivery Process for Receiving ADIT Stamp USCIS will issue the stamp if your green card is unavailable or if your renewal application and any prior extension notice have both expired.
Lenders are generally accustomed to working with these temporary documents, though some may want extra verification or take longer to process the file. Start any renewal well before you begin house hunting.
Bringing Down Payment Funds From Abroad
Many green card holders still have savings sitting in foreign bank accounts. Using those funds is perfectly legal, but it creates documentation on both the lending side and the tax side.
What Your Lender Will Want
When you wire money from an overseas account, lenders need a clear paper trail showing where the funds came from. Expect to provide three to six months of foreign bank statements from the originating account, wire transfer confirmations, and currency conversion records. Large or unexplained deposits will prompt questions.
Most lenders also require that foreign-sourced funds be “seasoned,” meaning they sit in your U.S. bank account for a set period before counting toward your down payment. Seasoning periods typically run 30 to 90 days depending on the lender and loan program. Move the money sooner than you think you need to; this is where most international buyers hit delays.
FBAR Filing
If your foreign financial accounts held a combined balance exceeding $10,000 at any point during the calendar year, you must file FinCEN Form 114, commonly called an FBAR, by April 15 of the following year.6Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Report Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts The threshold looks at the highest aggregate balance across all your foreign accounts at any point during the year, not the year-end balance. Even if you’ve already moved the money to the U.S., if the accounts briefly topped $10,000 combined, you file.
Foreign Gifts for Your Down Payment
If a relative abroad gifts you money and the total gifts from that person and related parties exceed $100,000 in a single tax year, you must report the gift on IRS Form 3520.7Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 3520 You won’t owe tax on the gift itself; the U.S. doesn’t tax recipients of gifts. But failing to file Form 3520 triggers steep penalties. Gifts from foreign corporations and partnerships have a much lower reporting threshold that the IRS adjusts annually for inflation.
Taxes Once You Own the Home
The IRS treats green card holders as resident aliens under the “green card test,” so you file the same Form 1040 as a citizen and report your worldwide income.8Internal Revenue Service. U.S. Tax Residency – Green Card Test You remain a resident alien for tax purposes as long as your lawful permanent resident status hasn’t been revoked or officially abandoned.9Internal Revenue Service. Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens
That works in your favor as a homeowner. You get the same tax benefits as citizens: the mortgage interest deduction on up to $750,000 of mortgage debt ($375,000 if married filing separately), and the deduction for state and local property taxes up to $10,000.
Property taxes themselves are a local obligation that applies equally to all homeowners regardless of status. Rates vary widely by location. Green card holders are generally eligible for homestead exemptions and other local tax benefits on the same basis as citizens, though the specifics depend on your county or municipality.
No FIRPTA Withholding When You Sell
When a nonresident alien sells U.S. real property, the buyer is generally required to withhold 15% of the sale price under the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act. Because green card holders are resident aliens rather than “foreign persons,” this withholding doesn’t apply. You give the buyer a signed certification stating you’re not a foreign person, including your name, taxpayer identification number, and home address, and the sale proceeds without any withholding.10Internal Revenue Service. Exceptions from FIRPTA Withholding