Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Labor and Industry

Termination of the Homeowner Assistance Fund and Servicer Obligations (Maryland)

Maryland Department of Labor sent this bulletin at 10/25/2023 03:03 PM EDT

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October 25, 2023

Termination of the Homeowner Assistance Fund and Servicer Obligations

The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) launched the Maryland Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF) in December 2021 to assist Maryland homeowners who have encountered financial difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) previously issued guidance (see here and here), regarding HAF and servicers’ obligations to meaningfully participate in the program. DHCD recently issued a statement that, as of September 18, 2023, the program is no longer accepting applications. This advisory clarifies that because of the program termination, servicers are no longer expected to advise borrowers of the existence of HAF.

Status of the HAF Program

Maryland’s HAF program concluded on September 18, 2023. According to DHCD, applications are no longer being accepted as the funding has been completely allocated to homeowners and the federal funding for this program has ended.

OFR Guidance

Previous OFR guidance instructed servicers to advise borrowers of the existence of HAF and to fully cooperate with borrowers and HAF program staff throughout the HAF process. As a result of the termination of the HAF program, this expectation is no longer applicable. Servicers are no longer required to notify borrowers of the existence of HAF.

Notwithstanding the above and pursuant to Maryland regulation, servicers are still required to make borrowers in default aware of the loss mitigation options available to them, and to pursue loss mitigation when possible (see COMAR 09.03.06.20).

Moreover, for applications that were pending before HAF concluded on September 18, 2023, servicers are advised to contact DHCD to confirm the status of the application and receive a denial letter before proceeding with foreclosure.

Contacts

If a homeowner has questions about an existing HAF application, they should call 1-833-676-0119 or login to the HAF application portal.

For questions about this guidance, contact Shereefat Balogun, Assistant Commissioner, Financial Services Licensing and Supervision, Office of Financial Regulation, by email at shereefat.balogun@maryland.gov or by phone at 410-230-6390.

The Office of Financial Regulation, a division of the Maryland Department of Labor, is Maryland's consumer financial protection agency and financial services regulator. For more information, please visit our website at www.labor.maryland.gov/finance. OFR - LABOR rectangle

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