12 U.S.C. § 1715z–5 — Purchase of fee simple title from lessors

(a) The Secretary may, on terms and conditions the Secretary sets, commit to insure and insure loans made by financial institutions to finance a homeowner's purchase of fee-simple title to the property on which the home sits.

(b) In this section:

(1) “Financial institution” means a lender the Secretary has approved as eligible for insurance under section 1703 of this title, or a mortgagee approved under section 1709(b)(1) of this title.

(2) “Homeowner” means a lessee under a long-term ground lease.

(c) A loan qualifies for insurance only if it:

(1) concerns property containing a dwelling principally designed for one, two, three, or four families;
(2) is no more than the cost of buying the fee-simple title or $10,000 per family unit ($30,000 per family unit if the property is in Hawaii), whichever is less;
(3) is limited so that, when added to the property's outstanding debt as the Secretary determines it, total outstanding debt does not exceed the applicable mortgage limit in section 1709(b);
(4) bears an interest rate agreed on by the mortgagor and mortgagee;
(5) has a maturity acceptable to the Secretary, but no longer than 20 years from the start of loan amortization; and
(6) meets any other terms, conditions, and restrictions the Secretary sets.

(d) Paragraphs (3), (5), (6), (7), (8), and (10) of section 1715k(h) apply to loans insured under this section. For those paragraphs, references to “home improvement loans” and “this subsection” mean loans under this section.