Take the comparison seriously before walking away from $17,000, because a repayment requirement and a refinance lockout are two very different things. This is one where the two of us land in slightly different places, which tells you it is a genuine judgment call. Jeb's instinct is to protect flexibility. FHA usually prices a bit below conventional (think around half a percent as an illustration, not a quote), so a borrower who qualifies for both rarely ends up with a lower payment by going conventional. But if the freedom to refinance whenever you want matters most to you, leaning conventional to avoid the strings is defensible. Josh leans toward taking the assistance, and the pivotal question is what that $17,000 actually is. Read the terms. If refinancing early simply means repaying the grant, you can still refinance whenever the math works; you settle up the $17,000 when you do. And if the grant covered your down payment, you will likely have enough equity later to cover that repayment. Treat it as a math problem rather than a dealbreaker. If a future refinance improves your rate meaningfully (say from an illustrative 7% down to 5.5%), the savings can easily justify repaying the grant. Get the exact grant terms in writing, run both scenarios with real payment numbers, and let the breakeven decide. Either choice is valid once you have seen the side-by-side.