FEMA Longer Term Housing Fact Sheet
Release Date: February 1, 2006
Release Number: HQ-06-020FactSheet
» FEMA Concludes Short-Term Lodging Program; Longer Term Housing Efforts Continue
No matter where a hurricane evacuee is currently living, they may be eligible for FEMA long-term housing assistance and must call FEMA immediately to register if they have not already done so at 800-621-FEMA (3362), or 1-800-462-7585 (TTY) for the hearing and speech impaired.
- Rental Assistance: The predominant form of long-term housing assistance available from FEMA to hurricane evacuees is rental assistance. Most eligible evacuees who registered with FEMA have already received an initial payment of $2,358 per household, intended to pay rent costs for an apartment or home for three months. Evacuees may be eligible to receive this aid for up to 18 months after the disaster declaration and are recertified by FEMA in three-month increments.
- Housing Locator: Working with federal partners, FEMA refers hurricane evacuees who receive FEMA housing assistance to federal housing options that have been made available by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Housing Development and Fannie Mae. Evacuees looking for more information on these and other rentals available in the Gulf Coast region and throughout the United States can call FEMA’s Housing Locator hotline at 800-762-8740 (TTY: 800-462-7585) or go online to dhronline.org
- HUD Assistance: Hurricane evacuees not eligible for FEMA housing assistance because they were not homeowners or renters before Hurricane Katrina or Rita may be eligible for the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Katrina Disaster Housing Assistance Program (KDHAP).
FEMA manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates mitigation activities, works with state and local emergency managers, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on March 1, 2003.
Last Modified: Thursday, 25-May-2006 14:57:30