Get a $20K Homebuyer Grant in MD, DC & VA (FHLB 2026)
The Grant Most Homebuyers Don’t Know Exists
If you’re saving for a home in Maryland, DC, or Virginia, there’s a good chance you’re leaving thousands of dollars on the table. Not because you don’t qualify for help, but because nobody told you about this program.
Here’s why: most lenders don’t have access to FHLB grant funds. Lenders sell the products they have. You won’t hear a loan officer say, "There’s a great grant program out there, but I can’t offer it to you." They just never bring it up. We have access to these funds, and when funding is available, we do everything we can to ensure you access all available programs in the market!
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta offers up to $20,000 in grant money toward your down payment and closing costs. If your household income falls within the qualifying range, you may be eligible. And the part that surprises most people? You don’t need to be low-income. The Workforce Housing Plus+ Program is specifically designed for middle-income earners: teachers, nurses, government workers, small business owners, and the people who earn decent salaries but still struggle to save for a down payment in this market.
I’ll be honest with you: the FHLB process is not the fastest or simplest grant out there. The application process can be clunky, it can take up to six weeks from contract to closing, and some products require a homebuyer education course. In a competitive market, that timeline doesn’t work for every situation. But after years of working with this program, we know how to streamline the process and set expectations upfront so there are no surprises.
Let me walk you through how these grants work, who qualifies, and what changed for 2026.
Who’s Behind These Homebuyer Grants?
The cash comes from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta (FHLB Atlanta), a government-sponsored enterprise that’s required to allocate a portion of its profits to affordable housing. They serve a district that includes Alabama, DC, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
The numbers speak for themselves. In 2025 alone, FHLB committed over $66 million in grant funding and helped originate over $900 million in first mortgages. More than 3,900 households received down payment assistance through participating lenders like us.
For 2026, FHLB has updated its programs with streamlined income verification, enhanced application tools, and continued strong funding. The grants are disbursed through member financial institutions (like us!) on a first-come, first-served basis, so timing matters.
The 2026 FHLB Grant Programs at a Glance
FHLB offers three distinct grant products for home purchases. Which one you qualify for depends on your household income and, in some cases, your profession.
| Workforce Housing Plus+ |
FHLB Set-Aside |
Community Partners |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum Grant | $15,000 | $17,500 | $20,000 |
| Income Requirement | 80.01%–120% AMI | ≤ 80% AMI | ≤ 80% AMI |
| First-Time Buyer? | No | Yes | No |
| Repayment | NO REPAYMENT | 5-YR RETENTION | 5-YR RETENTION |
| Who Qualifies? | Any eligible homebuyer | First-time buyers (HUD definition) | Teachers, nurses, firefighters, police, veterans, military |
| Min. Contribution | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 |
| Counseling? | No | Yes | Yes |
Swipe table left on mobile to see all programs
All grants can be used for down payment, closing costs, and/or reducing your loan principal. Funds cannot be combined across products for the same transaction.
Not Sure Which Grant You Qualify For?
I can verify your household income against the FHLB thresholds and tell you exactly which programs are available to you. Takes about five minutes. No credit pull required.
*100% Confidential. No sales pressure, just the math.
Workforce Housing Plus+: The “Free Money” Grant
Of all the FHLB grant products, this one has the most surprising structure. You would expect that a grant designed for higher-income households would come with more restrictions, not fewer. But the Workforce Housing Plus+ program is actually the most borrower-friendly of the three. It’s forgivable on day one. No retention period, no repayment, no lien on your property. For a $15,000 grant, that’s remarkable.
It's a True Grant
Unlike the other two FHLB products, the Workforce Housing Plus+ grant requires no retention period and no repayment. You receive up to $15,000, it gets applied at closing, and you never owe it back. There’s no five-year lien, no prorated payback if you sell early. It’s free money.
You do NOT need to be a First-Time Buyer
Already own a home and looking to move up? This program still works for you, as long as the new property will be your primary residence and it’s located in FHLB Atlanta’s district (which includes MD, DC, and VA).
The Income Range is Wide
Your household income needs to fall between 80.01% and 120% of the Area Median Income. In the DC Metro area, that means a single person earning between roughly $91,841 and $137,760 qualifies. For a family of four, the range is approximately $131,121 to $196,680. These aren’t low-income thresholds. They’re designed for working professionals.
Homeownership Set-Aside Program: $17,500
If your household income is at or below 80% of AMI, the grant amount jumps to $17,500. The trade-off is three additional requirements:
For many first-time buyers, this is an excellent deal. An extra $2,500 over the Workforce Housing Plus+ grant, and the five-year requirement is reasonable if you’re planning to stay in your home.
Community Partners Grant: $20,000
This is the largest grant FHLB offers for home purchases, and it’s designed to support the people who serve our communities:
Eligible professions include: currently employed or retired law enforcement officers, educators, health care workers, firefighters, other first responders, veterans, active-duty military, and their surviving spouses.
The income threshold is the same as the Set-Aside program (at or below 80% AMI), and it also carries a five-year retention period with homebuyer counseling required. The key difference? You do not need to be a first-time buyer.
If you’re a veteran or active-duty military member, this is worth exploring alongside a VA loan. Combining a VA loan’s zero-down-payment benefit with a $20,000 FHLB grant can significantly reduce your total cash to close.
Ready to Claim Your FHLB Grant?
FHLB funding is limited and distributed first-come, first-served. Whether you are ready to write an offer or just want to confirm you qualify, let's lock in your eligibility before the spring market burns through the allocation.
Just need to run the numbers first? Get a Custom Quote here →
Do You Qualify? 2026 Income Limits for Maryland, DC & Virginia
Before we get to the income charts, you need to understand how FHLB calculates income, because it differs from mortgage qualifying.
FHLB counts everything. This is an income-based program, and FHLB almost goes out of its way to make sure the money reaches the people who truly need it. That means they cast a wide net when adding up your household income. Your salary is just the starting point. Overtime, bonuses, commissions, child support you receive, rental income, tips, side hustles, money from selling things online, babysitting income, freelance work... if it shows up on your bank statements or tax returns, FHLB will count it.
Everyone in the household counts too. FHLB includes income from every person age 18 and older who will live in the home, even if they are not on the mortgage. That means a working spouse, an adult child living at home, or a parent moving in with you. Their income gets added to yours for eligibility purposes.
This catches people off guard. I have seen buyers who comfortably qualify for a mortgage get denied for the FHLB grant because a side income stream pushed their household total over the AMI threshold. The best thing you can do is be completely transparent about every source of income before we run the numbers. No surprises.
With that said, here are the 2026 income limits for the two major metro areas we serve. The limits are based on where the property is located, not where you currently live.
The Real-World Impact: Three Ways to Use a $15,000 FHLB Grant
The most obvious benefit of the FHLB grant is that it directly reduces the cash you need at closing. But that is only one way to use it. When you start getting creative with the structure, the grant can do a lot more.
For example, you can combine the grant with a seller closing cost credit to bring your out-of-pocket down to the $1,000 FHLB minimum. You can layer it with other local programs, such as the DC Tax Abatement, the Maryland Mortgage Program, or Virginia Housing assistance. Or you can reallocate the funds entirely to buy down your interest rate or pay for single-premium mortgage insurance, which lowers your monthly payment for the life of the loan.
The table below shows what this looks like in practice. This is a real scenario based on a $400,000 condo in Washington, DC, with a $350 monthly HOA fee, using a standard Conventional HomeReady mortgage.
| Standard Loan |
With FHLB Grant |
FHLB + Seller Credit |
FHLB + Seller Credit + Enhanced Structure |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purchase Price | $400,000 | $400,000 | $400,000 | $400,000 |
| Loan Amount | $388,000 | $388,000 | $388,000 | $383,610 |
| Interest Rate | 5.990% | 5.990% | 5.990% | 5.625% |
| Mortgage Insurance | $103/mo | $103/mo | $103/mo | $0/mo |
|
Total Payment incl. taxes, ins, HOA |
$3,029/mo | $3,029/mo | $3,029/mo | $2,810/mo |
| Cash to Close | $25,089 | $10,089 | $1,000 | $9,879 |
| Monthly Savings | — | — | — | $219/mo |
Swipe table left on mobile to see all scenarios
Example uses a 3% down conventional loan at market rates. Your actual numbers will vary based on credit score, loan type, and current rates.
How Each Strategy Works
Column 1: No grant at all.
The buyer brings $25,089 to closing. For a lot of people, that number alone keeps them on the sidelines.
Column 2: FHLB grant applied to reduce cash to close.
Same loan, same rate, same payment. But the buyer’s out-of-pocket drops by $15,000. This is the simplest use of the grant and the most common: it lowers the barrier to homeownership without changing anything about the loan itself.
Column 3: FHLB grant plus a seller credit
Now we’re combining strategies. With a $9,000 seller closing cost credit and the FHLB grant covering the rest, the buyer walks in with just $1,000 in cash, the FHLB minimum contribution. Same payment, same rate, but virtually zero out-of-pocket. This is a powerful play for buyers who have the income to support the monthly payment but haven’t had time to save.
Column 4: The full optimization.
This is where it gets interesting. Instead of minimizing cash to close, we redirect the grant and seller credit toward a mortgage rate buydown and financed PMI. The result: the interest rate drops from 5.990% to 5.625%, private mortgage insurance goes to $0, and the total monthly payment falls by $219. Over just the first five years, that’s over $13,000 in savings. Cash to close stays under $10,000.
Three different outcomes from the same $15,000 grant. The right strategy depends entirely on your goals: are you trying to minimize cash out of pocket, lower your monthly payment, or eliminate PMI?
Each time we work with a client, we review every available product to ensure they’re fully utilizing all possible loan options. The combinations are different for every buyer, and finding the right mix is what we do best.
See How FHLB Grants Work Step by Step
In this video, I walk through the FHLB grant process from eligibility to closing, including how we structure the grant to maximize your savings. If you've read through the programs above and want to see how it all comes together, this is a good place to start.
