ValueInsured Inc. has introduced a product that provides insurance coverage for consumers' down payments on a home purchase.
The Dallas company's +Plus product will reimburse consumers up to the full value of their down payment, if a homeowner is forced to sell his or her house at a loss.
The product is intended to work the same way that private mortgage insurance protects mortgage lenders, ValueInsured said in a Tuesday news release.
The homeowners' down-payment protection product is needed, as about 8 million U.S. homeowners remain underwater on their mortgages.
"When the down payment is protected, the modern American homebuyer experiences more control, confidence and flexibility, even in a volatile real estate market," Joseph Melendez, ValueInsured's chief executive, said in the release.
The product is backed by a reinsurance company, according to the release. ValueInsured did not identify the reinsurance company in the release.