The Vermont program that helps homeowners who have fallen behind on their mortgage or property taxes during the COVID-19 pandemic will re-open on Monday, May 3, 2021.  The Mortgage Assistance Program will provide grants covering up to 12 months of past due mortgage payments and property taxes for eligible homeowners.  

Funded through the federal CARES Act, the program operated first in July through December 2020, providing 636 Vermont households with grants averaging $6,000. With average monthly mortgage payments of $1,200, most of these households owed three months or more of payments and the majority were in a forbearance.

VHFA Executive Director Maura Collins joined U.S. Representative Peter Welch and housing partners last week for a virtual ribbon-cutting for Woolson Block in Springfield. The historic revitalization project, developed by Evernorth and Springfield Housing Authority, offers 20 new apartments and commercial space. The project received the majority of its funding from federal tax credits awarded by VHFA. 

Fair Housing Month is an opportunity to explore ways to promote housing opportunity throughout the year. Communities play important role to play in fair housing because many local practices or policies that seem outwardly reasonable can promote housing discrimination or segregation. The Vermont Housing Data website’s Housing-Ready Toolbox includes resources to help municipalities comply with fair housing laws and create more equitable, inclusive communities.

Executive Director Maura Collins announced that VHFA has selected Gale Proulx of Burlington as its new IT Support Specialist. 

Proulx is a 2020 graduate of Champlain College, where she received a B.S. in Data Analytics and worked as a Windows Administrator Assistant. Recently she has worked remotely as a data science associate for a New York company that provides managed IT services for financial firms. She has also worked for the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance and Vermont Public Radio on data analytics projects.

"We’re excited to have Gale join our IT Team," Collins remarked. "Her experience with analytics will be a valuable asset to the Agency as we strive to make data from our programs more insightful and accessible."