Buyer's Choice Subsidy (Baltimore community land trust homes, up to $120,000)

At a glance

Amount

Up to $75,000 at 50% of AMI or less, up to $120,000 at 30% of AMI or less, for a home bought through a land trust

Type of help

Grant

Where

Baltimore City

Run by

Baltimore City Department of Housing and Community Development, Affordable Housing Trust Fund, through Maryland-registered community land trusts

First-time buyer

Repeat buyers welcome

Income limit

Up to 50% of area median income

Homebuyer education

Not required

How the grant works

Money you do not pay back, as long as you meet the program's stay-in-the-home terms.

• Monthly payment: None

Who qualifies

• Repeat buyers welcome. The city does not publish a first-time buyer rule for this subsidy. Each land trust sets its own buyer requirements, so ask the one you work with.
• Income. Household income at or below 50% of the Area Median Income for up to $75,000, or at or below 30% of AMI for up to $120,000 (checked 2026-11-05).
• You have to buy through a community land trust. The buyer does not apply to the city directly. An actively operating, Maryland-registered land trust submits the application on your behalf.
• The home must be in Baltimore City and must be your primary residence.
• The land trust keeps ownership of the land, and resale limits stay with the home.

How to apply

1. 1Contact a Maryland-registered community land trust in Baltimore City and ask whether it is taking Buyer's Choice buyers. Land trusts the city has funded include NEHI, Charm City CLT, South Baltimore CLT and BCCR-CLT.
2. 2Go through that land trust's intake, including any education, income review and mortgage pre-approval it requires.
3. 3Find a home with the land trust's guidance. The land trust submits the Buyer's Choice application to the city on your behalf through the city's Neighborly portal.
4. 4At closing, the city grant goes toward your down payment and closing costs, and the land trust's resale terms are recorded with the home.

Watch out for

• This is a different kind of ownership. You build some equity, but resale price limits and equity sharing with the land trust are the trade for the subsidy. Read the land trust's terms before you commit.
• Applications are accepted on a rolling basis while funds last (checked 2026-11-05). The city did not post a remaining-funds figure.
• Not every land trust runs a Buyer's Choice program at any given time. Ask first, before you start touring homes.
• The income limits are low: 50% of AMI for the $75,000 tier and 30% of AMI for the $120,000 tier.

Straight answers

Sources

• Baltimore City DHCD, Affordable Housing Trust Fund funding availability (Buyer's Choice Subsidy Program) (read Nov 5, 2026)
• Baltimore City DHCD, $4 million for community land trust homeownership (99-year affordability, resale terms), 2023 (read Nov 5, 2026)
• Baltimore City DHCD, Affordable housing projects get boost from city (NEHI Homebuyer's Choice award), 2023 (read Nov 5, 2026)

Program details are summarized from public sources and change without notice. Funding badges reflect the last time we checked, not a guarantee of availability. This is buyer education from a real estate agent, not a loan pre-approval or a commitment to lend. Eligibility is decided by each program administrator and your lender. Equal Housing Opportunity.