Trying to save money for your first home can be incredibly difficult. Every day expenses stretch a pay check to its limit. If you look at the purchase price of an average home, it's hard to imagine saving up 5% for a down payment, plus the closing costs. That could easily be several thousand dollars. Just because you aren't able to save up for a down payment doesn't necessarily mean that you can't buy a home.

Fortunately, there are some home loans available that allow you to get into a home without having a down payment. These loans are referred to as ?zero down mortgages? because they allow you to take a loan without having a down payment.

Most typical mortgage programs require a prospective buyer to put down a minimum of 5% of the purchase price of the home?these programs are even Federal insured mortgage programs. Conventional loan programs require home buyers to put down 20% of the purchase price of the home.

But these zero down mortgages allow the buyer to finance 100% of the home purchase price. In fact, some of the loan programs even let buyers finance their closing costs into the loan, so you are essentially taking out a loan for 103% or 107% of the purchase price.

Of course, just like any other mortgage program, your credit will be carefully scrutinized. To qualify for a zero down mortgage, the borrower must have an excellent credit rating. Zero down loans are much more risky for the bank, so they want to have greater assurance that the borrower will not default on the loan.

Zero down loans are available in standard loan terms ? 15, 20, 30 or 40-year loans. These loans are available for fixed-rate loans. Because interest rates are still fairly low, this can be a great time to finance a loan and finally get into the home you've been waiting for.

Why would anyone not take a zero down loan? Well, one reason is that homes appreciate in value, but not necessarily more than a few percentage points each year. So if you are in a home that you plan to sell in just a couple of years, you won't be able to accumulate enough equity to make the sale profitable to sell. Zero down mortgage options are great for individuals that plan to stay in the home for at least 5 years or more, and can be assured that their homes will appreciate in value before they sell the home.

If you've been waiting to buy a home because you don't think you can afford to make a down payment, there's never been a better time to buy a home. These loan options allow you to take advantage of owning your own home, before the home prices escalate and make ownership completely out of your price range.