Disaster recovery

The Vermont Homeowner Assistance Program (HAP) will continue to provide federal grants into 2023 for overdue housing costs incurred by homeowners impacted by the pandemic.  Since the program launched in January 2022, homeowners with delinquent mortgage, property tax, utility and property association fee bills have applied for approximately half of the $50 million federal funding award to Vermont.  

The Urban Institute recently released an article about how an equity lens is essential to mitigating the effects of hotter summers that are expected in the future due to climate change.

The U.S. Treasury Department recently announced new guidelines that will significantly increase Vermont’s ability to use pandemic recovery funding to directly support the development of affordable housing and reduce costs for Vermonters. 

Over $11 million of a $50 million program to pay overdue housing costs for homeowners impacted by the pandemic has been disbursed within the first six months of the program. The Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) launched the Homeowner Assistance Program (HAP) in January 2022 with funding from the federal American Rescue Plan Act. It provides grants of up to $30,000 for income-eligible homeowners. 

As many states including Vermont begin to award millions in financial assistance to homeowners impacted by the pandemic, the U.S.

A new program from the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources has funding for low and moderate income Vermont homeowners to replace their home water or wastewater systems. Applications for the first round of funding are open through April 15, 2022.

Governor Scott announces a new grant program, the Homeowner Assistance Program (HAP), which will help Vermont homeowners facing pandemic hardships. The program will be managed through the Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) and is now accepting applications.

A new white paper from Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) finds that 86% of Vermont housing developers were experiencing project delays during the pandemic. The report draws from an online survey of statewide developers in August and a subsequent forum that brought together over 60 development professionals and state regulators to discuss challenges and potential solutions.

VHFA and the Vermont League of Cities and Towns recently published a checklist of options for using local recovery funds provided through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to promote recovery from the pandemic through investments in housing and neighborhoods.

On August 13, 2021, VHFA released the draft Homeowner Assistance Fund plan for submission to the U.S. Treasury describing homeowner needs and proposed programs to be offered through the Vermont Homeowner Assistance Program.