Five years ago, one of the most destructive natural disasters in our nation’s history hit the Gulf Coast. When they hit the coasts of Louisiana and Mississippi, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita took thousands of lives, displaced millions of residents, wiped out hundreds of square miles of coastal land, and inflicted major damage to nearly 300,000 homes.
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury today released the August edition of the Obama Administration’s Housing Scorecard (www.hud.gov/scorecard), a comprehensive report on the nation’s housing market. In July, housing prices remained level after 30 straight months of decline, while some price predictions have improved. In addition, historic low interest rates continued to promote home affordability and refinancing options for the nation’s families. However, the market remains fragile with foreclosure starts showing a slight increase and serious delinquencies continuing to work through the pipeline.
SIOUX FALLS, SD – U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan traveled to a Native American community in South Dakota today to announce $65 million in available funding to support a variety of community development and affordable housing production in Indian country throughout the U.S. Donovan made the announcement following a tour of the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota with Senator Tim Johnson.
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today announced that it is charging Testa Family Enterprises, LTD, owner of Royal Arms Apartments in Ravenna, Ohio, and the complex’s manager with housing discrimination for allegedly refusing to rent certain apartments to families with young children. HUD’s charge alleges that manager Christine Testa and Testa Family Enterprises, LTD, violated the Fair Housing Act by limiting or refusing to rent to families with small children.
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today that it is making $189 million in grants available to transform public and assisted housing and to revitalize communities. Appearing in today’s Federal Register are the Notices of Funding Availability, the federal application, for two revitalization initiatives: The Choice Neighborhoods FY 2010 and the HOPE VI FY 2010. Both applications can be accessed at www.grants.gov.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan today awarded nearly $312 million to 13 states to invest in efforts to reduce the human, physical, and economic toll of future disasters. The grants announced today are provided through HUD’s Disaster Recovery Enhancement Fund (DREF) and are intended to encourage states to undertake activities and long-term strategies that focus on reducing damages from future natural disasters.
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is charging several Bristol, Pennsylvania property owners and their management company with housing discrimination for refusing to rent a one-bedroom apartment to a mother and her seven-year-old daughter. According to HUD’s charge, managers and owners Quality Realty Associates and Vincent Quattrocchi, and owners Louis Quattrocchi and Cecilia Quattrocchi, violated the Fair Housing Act by turning away the mother because they did not permit children to live at their 26 apartment units.
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today announced that it is charging a Chicago couple, their real estate agent, and a real estate broker with refusing to sell a home listed for $1.799 million to a black couple because of their race, in violation of the Fair Housing Act. The charge alleges that owners Daniel and Adrienne Sabbia and real estate agent Jeffrey Lowe stalled negotiations and took the property off the market after receiving a $1.7 million offer from radio personality and comedian George Willborn and his wife, businesswoman Peytyn Willborn.
WASHINGTON – The Obama Administration today announced additional support to help homeowners struggling with unemployment through two targeted foreclosure-prevention programs. Through the existing Housing Finance Agency (HFA) Innovation Fund for the Hardest Hit Housing Markets (the Hardest Hit Fund), the U.S. Department of the Treasury will make $2 billion of additional assistance available for HFA programs for homeowners struggling to make their mortgage payments due to unemployment. Additionally, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will soon launch a complementary $1 billion Emergency Homeowners Loan Program to provide assistance – for up to 24 months – to homeowners who are at risk of foreclosure and have experienced a substantial reduction in income due to involuntary unemployment, underemployment, or a medical condition.
WASHINGTON – Across the U.S., thousands of children live in foster care or are at risk of being placed with other families simply because their parents cannot afford a home. Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced $20 million in funding to local housing authorities to help more than 2,500 families stay together. It’s estimated that the rental vouchers awarded today will reunite nearly 5,000 children with their parents or prevent them from entering foster care in the first place. (See attached chart ).