Maryland’s affordable-housing rules put more than $300 million in play
Maryland’s next competitive affordable-housing financing round is scheduled for Thursday, October 21, with applications due by noon as developers compete under a new state scoring system for a share of more than $300 million in state funding and federal tax credits.
The deadline is for developers seeking financing, not for renters applying for apartments. The rules are already in effect: Gov. Wes Moore approved the 2026 Qualified Allocation Plan and the related Multifamily Rental Financing Program Guide on April 8. Together, they govern how Maryland evaluates many proposals for affordable rental and transitional housing.
What changed under the 2026 plan
The plan gives additional competitive weight to projects that are ready to move toward construction. Its “Housing Starts Now” incentive favors developments that have secured required government approvals and can begin work more quickly.
That preference does not guarantee financing. Projects still must pass threshold review, compete through scoring and ranking, and demonstrate financial feasibility and long-term viability. The Community Development Administration, or CDA, makes the final determination on Low-Income Housing Tax Credit allocations.
The plan also gives added consideration to projects that include community amenities and services. Examples identified by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development include child care centers, libraries and retail space for fresh food.
For developers, the competitive Low-Income Housing Tax Credit ceiling increased to $2 million per project. The stated formulas provide $30,000 per unit up to $1.5 million, or $28,000 per unit up to $2 million.
DHCD also said applicants in the first 2026 competitive round could request up to $2.5 million in Rental Housing Financing Program funds per project, including Partnership Rental Housing Program funds. That limit was stated specifically for the first round and should not be assumed to apply to every future financing notice.
What the first round shows
DHCD’s July 17 implementation update reported 10 applications in the first 2026 competitive round. Together, the proposals requested $13.75 million in Rental Housing Financing Program funds, including $2 million in HOME funds, and $12.91 million in federal tax credits.
The applications proposed creating or rehabilitating 477 units in seven counties and Baltimore City. Those figures describe applications, not approved projects. As of the July 17 update, DHCD was still conducting threshold reviews. Applications that pass that stage move forward to scoring.
The distinction matters for residents and local governments. A proposal can be rejected before ranking, receive less financing than requested, be required to satisfy additional conditions or fail to reach construction. Even a tax-credit reservation or allocation remains subject to financial, compliance and completion requirements. Under the QAP, a reservation is an agreement to continue processing an application; it is not itself a final allocation of tax credits.
What developers need to do before October 21
The second competitive-round deadline is Thursday, October 21, 2026, at noon. DHCD requires one complete electronic application, including attachments and exhibits, through Procorem.
Applicants must use the 2026 QAP and Guide and should account for the plan’s scoring priorities, including construction readiness, project quality, community context, public purpose, leverage and cost effectiveness. The application must also satisfy threshold requirements before the project can be rated and ranked.
DHCD’s April implementation notice says the second-round process includes a waiver of one additional competitive-round criterion tied to the requirement that general-pool projects earn at least two Housing Starts Now points. That procedural change does not eliminate the broader review or make funding automatic.
What residents should expect
The plan could influence which affordable rental and transitional-housing proposals are most competitive, where projects are built, what amenities they include and how quickly approved developments move forward. Projects that combine housing with services or community facilities may receive a stronger position in the competition.
But the plan does not itself create a rental-assistance benefit, change tenant eligibility or guarantee a particular building. The 477 units listed in the first-round update are not approved, under construction or guaranteed.
Renters seeking housing will need to follow project-level leasing announcements and existing housing-resource channels. The QAP is a developer financing framework, not a tenant application.
What happens next
After the October deadline, DHCD and CDA will review applications, determine which meet threshold requirements, score and rank eligible proposals, and recommend reservations or allocations subject to the plan’s conditions.
For residents, the next meaningful updates will be project-level decisions and later evidence that developments have secured financing, completed construction and opened units. Until then, Maryland’s more-than-$300 million framework represents available investment capacity, not money already awarded to specific projects.
Sources
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