Chapel Hill Review

County of Orange issued the following announcement on Mar. 7.

The NC Homeowner Assistance Fund is now accepting applications from North Carolina homeowners whose finances were impacted by the pandemic and who need assistance with housing-related expenses. 

The fund was established through the 2021 American Rescue Plan to prevent mortgage delinquencies, defaults, displacements and foreclosures for homeowners experiencing financial difficulties due to the coronavirus pandemic. It offers assistance of up to $40,000 for qualified homeowners as long as funding is available.

“The economic impact of COVID-19 has been felt by many North Carolinians,” said Scott Farmer, executive director of the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, which is administering the NC Homeowner Assistance Fund. “This program is designed to help homeowners who are experiencing pandemic-related financial hardships hold on to their homes while they get back on their feet. Ensuring that families have stable housing has always been our mission and that has become even more critical during this ongoing public health crisis.” 

For qualified homeowners, the fund offers:

• Housing payment assistance for primary residence in North Carolina (for example, single-family home, townhome, condo or mobile home).
• Assistance for mortgage reinstatement to catch up on late payments (first or second mortgages) or other housing-related costs due to a period of forbearance, delinquency or default.
• Assistance covering other housing-related costs such as homeowner’s insurance, flood insurance, mortgage insurance, homeowner’s association dues/fees or delinquent property taxes to prevent foreclosure. 

Homeowners may be eligible for assistance if they are experiencing financial hardship due to job loss or business closure, reduction in hours or pay, difficulty obtaining new employment, death of a spouse or co-borrower or increased expenses due to the pandemic. 

Increased expenses can be due to health care, the need to care for a family member, increased childcare costs due to school closures or increased costs associated with quarantine. Applicants must be seeking assistance for a primary residence in North Carolina and meet income and other requirements.

Homeowners can learn more and apply for help by calling 1-855-MY-NCHAF (1-855-696-2423) or by visiting NCHomeownerAssistance.gov.

Help is also available for renters. Orange County Housing Department manages the Emergency Housing Assistance (EHA) Program, which has provided over $8.5 million in housing assistance to more than 2,000 Orange County residents since March 2020. This program is funded by Orange County and the Towns of Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and Hillsborough, along with state and federal funding.

The EHA was created to help Orange County residents with low incomes prevent eviction and homelessness and secure and maintain stable housing. Assistance is available to households in Orange County that:

1. Earn no more than 30% of the area median income (AMI), 
2. Have an urgent need for housing assistance that is related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and 
3. Do not have adequate resources to cover the cost of their housing need.

The most current income limits for Orange County are below:

• 1-person household: $18,150
• 2-person household: $20,750
• 3-person household: $23,350
• 4-person household: $25,900
• 5-person household: $28,000
• 6-person household: $30,050
• 7-person household: $32,150
• 8-person household: $34,200

Rent, mortgage and utility payments, security deposits, application fees and other emergency housing-related expenses are eligible for reimbursement.

 Original source can be found here.

Source: County of Orange