ANNAPOLIS, MD—Governor Larry Hogan on Monday announced that the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development’s Maryland Mortgage Program reached a record $1 billion in reservations for the program in 2019, representing more than 4,000 homebuyers. This is a 12-month period high for the history of the program.

The Maryland Mortgage Program provides fixed-rate mortgages that come with downpayment and closing cost assistance, tax incentives, and student debt relief available through the popular Maryland SmartBuy initiative.

“Homeownership is the backbone of strong communities,” said Governor Hogan. “Our administration has been focused on growing this program to ensure more young people and hardworking families are able to put down roots in the great state of Maryland.”

The Maryland Mortgage Program’s attractive interest rates have helped drive demand for this record-breaking year. Additional factors for this success include product changes, improvements to operations, and an aggressive marketing strategy, including the rollout of program-specific Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. The program’s business development team has helped grow the program from 80 participating lenders last year to 118 lenders that borrowers can now choose from. A partnership with the state association, Maryland REALTORS, as well as local associations statewide has resulted in a greater awareness of the program among homebuyers.

“We have dramatically increased production, meaning more residents are using these great benefits to secure a future here in Maryland,” said Secretary Kenneth C. Holt. “The majority of the Maryland Mortgage Program’s resources come from the sale of bonds, not the state’s budget, so this highly successful program is funded and managed with virtually no cost to Maryland’s taxpayers.”

Secretary Holt marked the milestone at the department’s annual event honoring its top-performing partners in Annapolis. The program recognized top-producing lenders and loan officers, as well as the top individual real estate agent and companies. For a list of award winners and photos from the event visit here.

The Maryland Mortgage Program has been the state’s flagship homeownership program for more than 35 years. Under the Hogan administration, the Maryland Mortgage Program has provided over $2.8 billion in mortgages to more than 13,000 Marylanders and eliminated more than $11 million in student debt for first-time homebuyers. For more information, visit http://mmp.maryland.gov.