(a)  The department may provide financial assistance, in accordance with this chapter, to households residing in rental housing, or a mobilehome park in which those households rent spaces, which is to be converted to condominium ownership, planned development ownership, as defined in Section 11003 of the Business and Professions Code, or ownership by a stock cooperative corporation, as defined in Section 11003.2 of the Business and Professions Code, for the purpose of assisting those households in acquiring a dwelling unit or a share in the stock cooperative corporation which entitles those households to occupancy of a dwelling unit.

(b)  The department may also provide financial assistance for the purpose of assisting households to purchase a mobilehome, as defined in Section 18008, which is located outside a mobilehome park, as defined in Section 18214, and which is affixed to a permanent foundation system.

(c)  The financial assistance provided pursuant to subdivision (a) or (b) shall not exceed 49 percent of the purchase price paid by the household for the dwelling unit, mobilehome, or share in the stock cooperative, and in no event shall that assistance be used to reduce the purchaser’s downpayment below 3 percent of the total purchase price.

(d)  The department may establish maximum purchase prices for such units, mobilehomes, or shares.

(e)  Eligibility for that financial assistance shall be limited to households which meet all of the following conditions:

(1)  Their incomes are no greater than the median for the county.

(2)  The households do not currently own residential property and have not owned any residential property, other than a mobilehome not affixed to a permanent foundation, for at least three years.

(3)  The households have not previously received any assistance pursuant to this chapter.

(4)  The households, without financial assistance pursuant to this section, would be unable to acquire a dwelling unit, mobilehome, or a share in a stock cooperative.

(f)  As used in this chapter, “dwelling unit” means the dwelling unit that the household occupies, or another dwelling unit not being purchased by its existing tenant within the same rental housing development or mobilehome park. “Dwelling unit” includes a space in a mobilehome park, as defined in Section 18214, and includes a mobilehome rented with the space. “Dwelling unit” also includes factory-built housing, as defined by Section 19971, whether the household occupied that factory-built housing or other factory-built housing in the same rental housing development or mobilehome park.

(Amended by Stats. 1984, Ch. 1406, Sec. 4.5. Effective September 26, 1984.)