Smart7, Easy8 or Trusty10? The Answer Surprises People
Program and regulatory figures verified October 6, 2026. Details change; confirm your scenario with us.
There are four MHC products and one decision, and the decision is not about which number is biggest. It is about what each program costs you in eligibility.
What does each MHC program actually require?
MHC publishes all of this, spread across four separate program pages. Collected in one place it reads differently:
| Smart7 | Easy8 | Trusty10 | JustRate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assistance | $7,000 | $8,000 | $10,000 (+$2,000 Plus 2) | None |
| Rate on the second | 0% | 0% | 2% interest rate | — |
| Term on the second | Deferred | Deferred | 15-year | — |
| Monthly payment | None | None | Yes | None |
| First-time buyer | Never required | Required outside target areas | Required outside target areas | Required outside target areas |
| Veteran exemption | Not needed | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Income ceiling | $137,870 statewide | County MRB | County MRB | County MRB |
| Price ceiling | $413,610 | $382,590 / $316,373 | $382,590 / $316,373 | $382,590 / $316,373 |
| First mortgage rate | Set by MHC | MRB | MRB | MHC's lowest MRB |
| Homebuyer education | Required | Required | Required | Required |
What does $1,000 more assistance really cost?
Take a one-or-two-person household buying in Lee County, which MHC lists as non-target throughout. The county MRB limit there is $81,100. Smart7's limit is $137,870, statewide, regardless of county.
So moving from Smart7 to Easy8 for $1,000 more money does this:
- Income ceiling: $137,870 down to $81,100. That is $56,770 of earnings you are no longer allowed to have.
- Purchase price: $413,610 down to $316,373. That is $97,237 less house.
- And the first-time buyer requirement now applies, unless you are a veteran.
Mike's view, after years of originating these: a buyer who clears the Smart7 box should take Smart7 and stop reading. The extra $1,000 is not worth re-qualifying for.
When is Easy8 the better choice?
When your income sits comfortably under your county's MRB limit and you want the bond rate. Easy8 pairs $8,000 of 0% deferred money with Mortgage Revenue Bond pricing, and for a household well inside the county limit there is no eligibility cost to taking it. The $1,000 is simply $1,000.
That is the real test. Not "which is bigger" but "does the tighter limit actually bind on me?" If it does not bind, take the bigger number.
When is Trusty10 worth a monthly payment?
When the cash at closing is the thing standing between you and the house, and your debt-to-income has room. $10,000 is meaningfully more than $7,000, and if you need it to close, the 15-year second is the price of closing.
What makes it the wrong default is that most buyers never learn they are buying a payment. MHC discloses it; the pages that summarise MHC usually do not. The detail on the 15-year second.
Why would anyone take no assistance?
Because MHC says JustRate carries a lower rate than any of its other bond programs. If your down payment is already handled, by savings or a gift, then assistance you do not need is a lien you do not need, and the better trade is the rate. JustRate, in full.
Can a teacher combine HAT with one of these?
Yes, and MHC is specific about the consequence. Housing Assistance for Teachers has no income limit on its own, but pair it with JustRate, Smart7, Easy8 or Trusty10 and that product's income limit applies to the whole file. A teacher at $130,000 of household income can use HAT alone, or HAT with Smart7, but not HAT with Easy8 in a county capped at $81,100.
That single sentence decides a lot of teacher files. HAT in full.
Frequently asked questions
Is Smart7 or Trusty10 better in Mississippi?
Smart7 for most buyers, despite paying $3,000 less. Smart7 is 0% with no monthly payment, has no first-time buyer requirement, allows income to $137,870 statewide and a price to $413,610. Trusty10 pays $10,000 but MHC publishes it at a 2% interest rate over 15 years, so it amortises into a monthly payment, and it uses county income limits starting at $81,100. Take Trusty10 when you need the cash to close. Verified against MHC 2026-10-06.Can I use more than one MHC program at once?
The four MHC mortgage products are alternatives rather than additions, since each includes its own first mortgage. Housing Assistance for Teachers is different: it is Mississippi Department of Education money and MHC allows it alongside JustRate, Smart7, Easy8 or Trusty10. The catch is that pairing it imports that product's income limit, where HAT alone has none. Verified against MHC 2026-10-06.Which MHC program has the highest income limit?
Smart7, at $137,870, and it holds in every county. The highest county Mortgage Revenue Bond limit anywhere in Mississippi is $117,720, for a one-or-two-person household in a target area of Lafayette County, so Smart7's ceiling is the most generous in all eighty-two counties. Verified against MHC 2026-10-06.Does Easy8 or Smart7 have a monthly payment?
Neither. MHC writes both as 0% second mortgages with the principal deferred, coming due when you sell the home, refinance it, stop occupying it as your primary residence, or pay the first mortgage off. Nothing is collected monthly on either one. Trusty10 is the exception in the MHC stack, at a 2% rate over 15 years. Verified against MHC 2026-10-06.What is the purchase price limit for MHC programs?
Smart7 allows up to $413,610. Easy8, Trusty10 and JustRate allow $382,590 in target areas and $316,373 outside them. The target and non-target designation is set per area by MHC, and in thirty counties a single county contains both. Verified against MHC 2026-10-06.Mike Certo · NMLS #260555 · Cornerstone First Mortgage NMLS #173855 · Equal Housing Lender. Educational content about financing, not a loan commitment and not tax or legal guidance. MHC program terms, income limits and purchase price limits are set by the Mississippi Home Corporation and change; figures here carry the date we verified them against MHC's published pages and its Homebuyer Guide. Smart7 and Easy8 are 0% second mortgages with no monthly payment, deferred until sale, refinance, loss of owner-occupancy or payoff of the first mortgage. Trusty10 is a 15-year second at a 2% rate set by MHC and does carry a monthly payment. Housing Assistance for Teachers is Mississippi Department of Education grant money forgiven on completion of three years' service in a district the Department designates as critical-shortage. Loans are subject to borrower and property qualification.