Program will Ease Student Loan Debt, Promote Homeownership
ANNAPOLIS, MD - The Hogan Administration today announced the first home purchase under a new homeownership initiative designed to ease the burden of student debt. Maryland SmartBuy, within the Department of Housing and Community Development, is the first program of its kind in the nation and will make move-in-ready homes available to buyers while eliminating student loan debt burden, which is often a significant barrier to homeownership for younger homebuyers.
Maryland SmartBuy is the latest initiative in the Hogan administration’s ongoing commitment to help qualified buyers move out from under student debt and into homeownership. The event was attended by Lt. Governor Boyd Rutherford and Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development Secretary Kenneth C. Holt.
“With the launch of SmartBuy, Maryland is among the first in the nation to actively address student debt as an obstacle to homeownership,” said Lt. Governor Rutherford. “We recognize that first-time homebuyers play a pivotal role in the health of the housing market, which is critical to the strength of Maryland’s overall economy.”
This law, which was introduced by the Hogan Administration in the 2016 Legislative Session, authorizes the department to make direct payments on student loans in conjunction with other financial assistance or residential mortgage loans offered under the Maryland Mortgage Program, beginning with the Maryland SmartBuy initiative.
Under the initiative, eligible buyers with student debt can purchase move-in-ready properties made available through the department. The typical buyer can realize substantial savings on quality homes throughout Maryland. Specifically, Maryland SmartBuy will:
Eliminate the buyer’s student loan debt;
Provide the buyer with one convenient payment per month;
Enable the buyer to access attractive financing and closing cost assistance;
Ensure a safe, streamlined, and straightforward home buying and financing experience.
“With Maryland SmartBuy, our state is at the forefront of removing the obstacle of student debt to successful homeownership,” said Department Secretary Kenneth C. Holt. “We want to empower young people to establish roots in Maryland and help strengthen our state as they enjoy the financial security of homeownership.”
The initiative will create an innovative home buying model that could be adopted by the rest of the nation. Mortgage loans will be provided through the department’s Maryland Mortgage Program, which has been the state’s flagship homeownership assistance program for over 30 years. Traditionally, the program provides fixed-rate mortgages, primarily to first-time homebuyers, along with other down payment and closing cost incentives.
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8 comments:
I borrowed for school, and paid it off as promised--reducing my access to new cars and "eating out" while I fulfilled my committent to that loan==why should I as a taxpayer in MD now subsidize overextended fools with degrees in "ethnic studies"?
You shouldn't but Hogan is worries the population of educated, working citizens will decline in future years. That's why he has proposed this. Unfortunately Maryland is largely a welfare state already.
Finally! My "Performance Arts" degree will pay off! Can I get a job with Raytheon demonstrating their products?
Crap..sorry for the uneducated typo...I meant worried. My bad.
This is BS. You make the bill you pay the bill. I busted my butt for years to get what I wanted now you are going to basically hand over this earned benefit to the ones who feel privileged and don't need to earn the benefits of life. That is another dumb down the ones that expect something for nothing. What about the ones that bust their butt every day and have to pay bills and cannot buy a home for this same reason. Discriminatory practice.
Are you serious? Who is paying for all this? The Maryland taxpayers?
How many of the people paying for this with their taxes are state employees, whose pensions are grossly underfunded because of stupid ideas like this one?
So if their retirement goes out the window, at least they can feel warm and fuzzy knowing that they helped get Tom and Susie out of their mom's basement.
If I read it right, the program doesn't eliminate the student loan debt, rather it allows the student loan to be rolled over into the mortgage. This will allow the 10 year student loan to be rolled into and added to the loan amount of a 30 year mortgage, resulting in a much lower interest rate, but taking 30 years to pay off. It lowers the PAYMENT on the student loan portion of the mortgage, but will drastically increase the amount of interest paid on the student loan portion over 30 years. It is just like the credit companies that will pay off your revolving credit card debt with high interest rates and replace it with long term, lower interest loans lower payments. Taking 30 years to pay off a student loan, like credit card debt, just to get a lower interest rate and payment, is not necessarily a good thing. It can cost one much more money in the long run (no pun intended, but it's there).
Just more sugar coated section 8 housing.
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