Last week, both sides of a newly renovated duplex in Gray hit the market for just $218,000 each. By Friday, over 100 people had started the application process.

The duplex, located at 6A and 6B Collyer Brook Road, is the inaugural project for “A Path Forward — Homeownership for ME,” an Avesta Housing program designed to open doors for moderate-income prospective homebuyers who’ve found themselves locked out of Maine’s hypercompetitive housing market.

As part of the program, Avesta purchases homes in need of a little TLC, renovates them and sells them to qualified applicants for an affordable price.

Nicole DiGeronimo, director of the Homeownership and Financial Counseling Department at Avesta Housing, isn’t surprised by the immediate flood of interest and expects a lot more in the coming weeks.

“We knew that having two homes for sale in Cumberland County at less than half the median sale price … would drum up a lot of interest,” she said.