December 22, 2021
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced the availability of federal disaster relief in certain counties in Alabama affected by storms and flooding in October of 2021.
A presidential major disaster declaration was placed into effect for the counties of Jefferson and Shelby.
An FHA/HUD press release published at HUD.gov adds that there is also federal funding available from the Federal Emergency Management Agency or FEMA offered on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide, but this is not part of the relief offered directly to homeowners. What is available for them?
HUD offers “immediate foreclosure relief” for FHA mortgages in the form of a 90-day moratorium “on foreclosures of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured home mortgages commenced on the date of the Presidential major disaster declaration, and foreclosures of mortgages to Native American borrowers guaranteed under the Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee program”.
There are also options to rebuild or replace homes damaged in these federal disaster areas thanks to the FHA 203(k) and FHA 203(h) rehabilitation loan options.
The 203(k) Rehab loan is offered to any financially qualified applicant, but the FHA 203(h) Rehab loan is specifically for recovering from a disaster.
FHA loan rules permit these two 203 rehabilitation loan programs to be used together when recovering from a disaster. The FHA and HUD urge homeowners who need this relief to contact their loan servicer as soon as possible or call the FHA Resource Center (1-800-304-9320).
Like previous announcements from the FHA and HUD in 2021, mortgage relief also includes assistance for those recovering from the disaster, but directly related to Fair Housing Act rights.
The HUD official site reminds us, “Housing discrimination sometimes occurs when people are attempting to find and access housing following a disaster.” There is a recent push by the FHA and HUD to expand attention on Fair Housing issues associated with disaster recovery.
HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity is available to assist people who believe they have experienced housing discrimination–and that is true regardless of whether you are in a federal disaster zone or not.
If you experience discrimination at ANY stage of the housing process including recovery from a natural disaster, file a complaint by calling HUD at 1-800-669-977 or visiting How to File a Complaint on the HUD official site.
Joe Wallace has been specializing in military and personal finance topics since 1995. His work has appeared on Air Force Television News, The Pentagon Channel, ABC and a variety of print and online publications. He is a 13-year Air Force veteran and a member of the Air Force Public Affairs Alumni Association. He was Managing editor for www.valoans.com for (8) years and is currently the Associate Editor for FHANewsblog.com.
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