Maryland Mortgage Program Announces Annual Award Winners

NEW CARROLLTON, Md. – For the Department of Housing and Community Development, partner organizations play a critical role in the agency’s success. On Friday, April 22, the Maryland Mortgage Program held its annual awards breakfast. The event honored the program’s top performing lender partners in 2015.

Since 2010, the awards breakfast has served as the department’s way of recognizing the partners that help advance the Maryland Mortgage Program. The honorees have gone above and beyond to utilize the department’s resources, and assist in achieving homeownership for all Maryland residents.

Secretary Kenneth C. Holt and Assistant Secretary Tiffany Robinson present Heidi Ford of First Home Mortgage (center) with the award for Top Producing Lender.

“Our partners are a vital part of our mission,” Secretary Kenneth C. Holt said. “Without them, we could not have provided 3,270 mortgage loans with a volume of $636 million in 2015 to residents in all of Maryland’s jurisdictions. We’re very proud of the work they’ve done, and want to express our deep appreciation.”

In addition to the awards program, Laurie Benner from the Maryland Association of Realtors, Burgess Kegan of Maryland Mortgage Bankers Association and Steve Gondol of Live Baltimore gave remarks. Three senior representatives from U.S. Bank, the master servicer of the Maryland Mortgage Program for nearly five years, flew from Ohio and Minnesota to attend the event. They presented an award for best loan packages to First Home Mortgage, highlighted processing improvements at the bank, and affirmed their commitment to the program.

The winners are:

Top Producing Lenders

First Home Mortgage Corporation – Accepted by Heidi Ford, Vice President, Secondary Marketing
First Home Mortgage led the way with the highest overall production.
George Mason Mortgage – Accepted by Sue Spinetta, Vice President, Product Management & Investor Relations
George Mason Mortgage, based in Virginia, has become a significant player in Maryland, and moved from third place to second by the end of 2015.
Howard Bank – Accepted by Jeff Albaugh, Senior Vice President
Howard Bank has been an approved lender with the Maryland Mortgage Program since 2013, and made it to the gold-tier productivity list in just one year.

Secretarial Recognition: Rising Star Award

Monarch Mortgage and Fitzgerald Financial, divisions of Monarch Bank – Accepted by Kirk Forman, Branch Manager
The Rising Star Award recognizes a remarkable leap in year-to-year performance. Monarch Bank has been an approved Maryland Mortgage Program lender for several years. In 2015, incentivized by the TriplePlay initiative, Monarch tripled their business with the program, moving from bronze to gold.

Best Utilization of Builder/Developer Incentive Program

Universal American Mortgage Company / Lennar Homes
Partner Match Programs allow borrowers to get additional down payment assistance from their employer, a builder or developer, or a community partner. For most products, the Maryland Mortgage Program will match the contribution up to $2,500 in the form of a zero percent loan on top of regular down payment assistance. Usage of these programs has been strong and steady with 302 partners. For the third year running, Lennar Homes and Universal American Mortgage Company are the top producing Builder/Developer Partner.

Staff Recognition Award: Best Processor

Erin Glackin of First Home Mortgage
Erin was chosen by the Maryland Mortgage Program’s underwriting and processing staff as the year’s best processor; her familiarity and comfort with the program make her loan packages a breeze to review!