Offices in Columbus, Eagle Lake open for Harvey reimbursement, assistance programs
Colorado County residents who suffered damage to their homes as a result of flooding in the wake of 2017’s Hurricane Harvey are potentially eligible to participate in separate reimbursement and assistance programs through the Texas General Land Office. The Homeowner Reimbursement Program application was made available last week, the Texas General Land Office announced. An additional program, the Homeowner Assistance Program, has been available for some months.
The Texas General Land Office (GLO) allocated $100 million in Community Development Block Grants for Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to reimburse homeowners for up to $50,000 for eligible repairs for damage from Hurricane Harvey.
To be eligible for the reimbursement program: the home must be the owner’s primary residence; the homeowner must be able to provide proof of damage from Hurricane Harvey; the homeowner must be able to provide receipts and/ or invoices for eligible repairs; eligible repairs must have been completed prior to the application launch date of Feb. 28, 2019.
Applications are anticipated to outnumber available funds, so apply quickly. Additional criteria may apply.
In accordance with HUD requirements, homeowners are not eligible if: The home is in a 100-year floodplain, was substantially damaged and is not at least 2 feet above the base elevation; the home is in a 100-year floodplain, and the household income is greater than 120% area median income and homeowner did not have flood insurance on August 24, 2017; homeowner received prior disaster relief assistance for home located in a 100-year floodplain and did not maintain flood insurance; the home is in a floodway, which is an area designed to flood; the home may also not be eligible if there is lead based paint that was not remediated.
Potential applicants should review the Homeowner Reimbursement Program Checklist to have all applicable documents ready prior to applying. Interested homeowners should visit recovery.texas.gov/hrp to apply online or download a printable version of the application.