Home repairs are a necessary part of owning a house, and the good news is that help with home repairs is available. There are a wide variety of programs that offer funding to help you make the repairs or modifications needed to keep your home safe and livable.
These programs are offered by government agencies such as HUD, State Housing agencies, Counties and Cities. They may provide grants, loans or a combination of both to help you with your repair or modification needs. You can also get help with home repairs from non profit organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Rebuilding Together or from community volunteers and their own funds or donations to help you.
To qualify for some of these home improvement or repair assistance programs you must meet certain income and property criteria, and a site inspection of your home will be required to determine what the repairs or improvements are and what amount of financial assistance you may receive. For example, the Home Repair Program (HRP) provides a grant for roof and porch repair. This is a competitive process and applicants are assessed on a first-come, first served basis.
Another program, the Project HELP (Homeowners Emergency Loan/Grant Program) provides mortgages and/or grants to owner occupants of 1-4 family homes to repair water mains, boilers, sewer lines, sidewalk violations, roofs, plumbing and electrical problems and eliminate conditions that are dangerous to health and safety.
Ultimately, the best way to find help with home repairs is to research local and county wide non profits as well as state wide agencies and government agencies offering programs that can help you with your home improvements. Be patient, persistent and flexible. Remember that some of these organizations will be overloaded and it may take a while to hear back from them.