Howard County loan limits 2026Maryland: FHA, VA and conforming
For 2026, the conforming loan limit in Howard County, Maryland is $832,750 for a one-unit home, the national baseline (FHFA). The FHA forward mortgage limit is $747,500 (HUD). VA sets no loan limit for a veteran with full entitlement; with remaining entitlement, VA uses the $832,750 county limit.
Howard County loan limits by number of units
| Units | Conforming 2026 | FHA 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 unit | $832,750 | $747,500 |
| 2 units | $1,066,250 | $956,950 |
| 3 units | $1,288,800 | $1,156,700 |
| 4 units | $1,601,750 | $1,437,500 |
Conforming limits, announced November 25, 2025, apply to loans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac acquire from January 1. FHA limits for 2026 apply to case numbers assigned on or after January 1. A lender may set lower maximums.
How Howard County compares
Howard County, Maryland is at the $832,750 baseline. 5 counties in Maryland are above the baseline, up to $1,249,125. Nationally the one-unit limit runs from $832,750 to the $1,249,125 high-cost ceiling, higher in Alaska and Hawaii.
FHA: Howard County, Maryland's $747,500 is the 5th highest in Maryland, and 12 counties of 24 in Maryland are above the floor (state range $541,287 to $1,249,125).
Every county of a metropolitan area gets the same conforming limit. Howard County, Maryland shares its limit with Anne Arundel County, Baltimore County, Carroll County, Harford County, Queen Anne's County and Baltimore city.
FHA loan limit in Howard County
HUD sets the limit from 115 percent of the area's median home price; HUD's median for Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD is $650,000, and its published one-unit limit is $747,500, between the $541,287 floor and the $1,249,125 ceiling. HUD sets FHA limits by metropolitan area and county; Howard County, Maryland is in HUD's Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD area.
For 2026, HUD's national floor is $541,287 (65 percent of the $832,750 conforming limit) and the ceiling is $1,249,125 (150 percent), with a higher ceiling in Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The statute caps a one-family FHA loan at 115 percent of the area median, within those bounds (12 U.S.C. 1709(b)(2)).
VA loan limit in Howard County
Since January 1, 2020, there are no county loan limits for veterans with full VA home loan entitlement. County limits still apply to veterans who have used entitlement and not restored it. For them VA uses FHFA's one-unit conforming limit, $832,750 in Howard County, Maryland for 2026, even when buying a 2 to 4 unit property.
VA's method: remaining entitlement is 25 percent of the county limit minus the entitlement already used and not restored. With $50,000 in use: $208,187.50 minus $50,000 is $158,187.50. VA loans are often pooled in securities that require a 25 percent guaranty, so without a down payment lenders often limit the loan to four times the remaining entitlement: $632,750 here. The county limit does not apply to an Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan (IRRRL): above $144,000, VA guarantees 25 percent of an IRRRL regardless of entitlement (VA Circular 26-25-10).
Loan limits in nearby counties
All Maryland counties · Loan limits in every state
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National pages: conforming loan limits · FHA loan limits · VA loan limits · jumbo loan limit
Check a Howard County property
HeritageDeed does not search title records in Howard County yet; the counties it covers are listed under title search coverage, where a title report is $49 per report. For any US address, the Environmental Records Report lists Superfund, hazardous waste, leaking tank and brownfield sites nearby, with the flood zone.
Questions about Howard County loan limits
What is the conforming loan limit in Howard County for 2026?
$832,750 for a one-unit home, $1,066,250 for two units, $1,288,800 for three and $1,601,750 for four, effective January 1, 2026. These are the largest loans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can buy in Howard County, Maryland (announced November 25, 2025).
What is the FHA loan limit in Howard County?
$747,500 for one unit, $956,950 for two, $1,156,700 for three and $1,437,500 for four units in 2026, for FHA case numbers assigned on or after January 1, 2026. HUD sets the limit from 115 percent of the area's median home price; HUD's median for Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD is $650,000, and its published one-unit limit is $747,500, between the $541,287 floor and the $1,249,125 ceiling.
What is the VA loan limit in Howard County?
A veteran with full entitlement has no VA loan limit (VA, since January 1, 2020); the lender still decides what you can borrow. With entitlement already in use, VA uses FHFA's one-unit limit, $832,750 for 2026 in Howard County, Maryland, even for a 2 to 4 unit property. Example with $50,000 of entitlement in use: 25 percent of $832,750 is $208,187.50, minus $50,000 leaves $158,187.50 of entitlement, and most lenders lend up to four times that, $632,750, without a down payment.
What is the jumbo loan limit in Howard County?
A mortgage above $832,750 for a one-unit home in Howard County, Maryland is a jumbo loan in 2026: FHFA defines the conforming limit as the highest amount Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac can acquire and calls mortgages above it jumbo loans.
Is Howard County a high-cost area for loan limits?
No. Howard County, Maryland has the $832,750 baseline conforming limit for 2026, like most US counties: FHFA says over 95 percent of counties are at the baseline. FHFA raises a limit only where 115 percent of the area's median home value exceeds the baseline.
When will the 2027 loan limits for Howard County be announced?
FHFA updates the conforming limits at the end of November and they take effect on January 1 (FHFA announced the 2026 limits on November 25, 2025). HUD's FHA limits follow in a mortgagee letter (Mortgagee Letter 2025-23 set the 2026 limits). This page shows the 2027 figures as soon as each agency publishes them. Conforming limits do not decrease.
Legal references
- 12 U.S.C. 1709(b)(2), FHA mortgage limits (115 percent of the area median, floor and ceiling)
Published federal limits. JSON: /api/data/loan-limits/maryland/howard-county. Not lending advice.