HARTFORD, Conn. -- While tough times in the housing market are making it difficult to get a mortgage, those who don't mind living off the beaten path can get approved for a mortgage and not have to worry about closing costs.

Until recently, the Butler family told Eyewitness News that moving into a home like their 1900s Colonial was a pipe dream.

The family was renting a two-bedroom apartment in Enfield and wanted a home with more space for the growing family.

Being on one fixed income, the Butlers said they weren't sure how they could afford to purchase a home.

Real estate agent Christina Brine was undaunted though.

"I do a lot of first-time buyers who don't have a lot of money and they've been contacting me and they cannot afford what they could before, so this was exciting," she said.

Brine said she worked with mortgage broker John Burke to find a way for the Butlers to get into their dream home.

Burke got the Butlers a mortgage through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

"You could literally get into a house for 100 percent of the purchase price, plus closing costs up to the appraised value -- it's amazing," said Burke.

"If you have clean credit, but you don't have to have perfect credit," Burke said. "Blemishes -- there has to be a reason for what happened."

He said a stipulation of the mortgages is that the home has be in what the department identifies as a rural zone.

"Traditionally, financing has always been harder to get in rural areas. These days, it might be harder as conventional appraisals and constraints become tighter and tighter -- this is meant to serve rural communities," he said.

After qualifying, the Butlers put down $40 at closing, and now have enough space to add to their growing family.

"It was perfect. It was like money from heaven," said Amanda Butler. "We wanted to be in the country and that was one of the stipulations of the loan, so it couldn't be more perfect."

More Information:

Link: U.S. Department of Agriculture