Correct. With a temporary buydown you qualify at the full note rate, not the subsidized rate you pay in the early years. Fannie, Freddie, FHA, and VA all treat it the same way: the subsidy expires, so underwriting wants to know you can carry the real payment once it does. A temporary buydown helps your early cash flow. It does not stretch your qualification. There is a genuine exception worth knowing, and it lives on the ARM side rather than the buydown side. On FHA adjustable-rate loans with a longer initial fixed period (the 3-, 5-, 7-, and 10-year ARMs), the borrower qualifies at the initial note rate, which can help someone who is close on the numbers. On an FHA 1-year ARM, you qualify at the note rate plus 1% if you are putting less than 5% down. Conventional loans generally do not offer that treatment. If qualifying at the note rate is what stands between you and the house, loan structure is exactly what we would dig into on the free Roadmap conversation, about 20 minutes where we run your real numbers.