Booming real estate prices are placing a premium on the American Dream of home ownership. But that's no reason to get left behind.

“Higher home prices and rising interest rates are putting the double whammy on first-time home buyers,” says Richard Roll of the American Homeowners Association. “Fortunately, easier down payments are available through various low-cost loan programs.”

In fact, the Nehemiah loan program allows low-income home buyers to skip the down payment. Here's how it works. The seller agrees to donate 4 percent of the sales price to the Nehemiah Program, which in turn provides 3 percent to the home buyer in down payment assistance, in the form of a gift.

The gift of the down payment does not have to be repaid but the home buyer must come up with 1 percent of the purchase price for certain items such as the appraisal fee, credit report and hazard insurance. The Nehemiah Progressive Housing Development Corp. makes 1 percent on each transaction to cover its expenses.

Fannie Mae, the federally chartered corporation that purchases loans from lenders, makes a wide range of affordable programs available to lenders. Check with your local lender because income eligibility is set according to the local economy and housing prices. Here are some of those programs.

Start-Up mortgage: You pay 5 percent down for this 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage. The payments are lower the first year because you pay interest only, no principal. The advantage is you get to deduct the entire monthly payment from your taxes, since mortgage interest is deductible. None of the 5 percent down payment can come from a grant, family gift or another loan — it has to be money you saved.

Three/two option: 2 percent of the down payment may come from a grant, family gift or another loan while only the remaining 3 percent must come from savings.

Fannie 97: Here's a deal for people with a good credit history — only 3 percent down total. But it has to come from your personal savings. To help cover closing costs, borrowers can use gifts, grants or loans from family members or other programs or agencies such as housing authorities.

Fannie neighbors: This program is designed to encourage home ownership in designated central urban areas (min. population 250,000), areas with higher minority populations, or neighborhoods with a median income at or below 80 percent for the particular metropolitan area.

All programs except Fannie Neighbors are geared toward low-income families.

For information on any aspect of buying or selling a home, go to http://www.ahahome.com, the web site for American Homeowners Association.