Residents in affordable housing need not worry about paying for repairs to their homes — the town might be willing to help them out.
Applications for federal grants through the Community Development Block Grant and the Orange County HOME Program are due Feb. 28.
And Northside neighborhood residents have the option of applying to the Comprehensive Housing Rehabilitation Program, which was established in 2003 by the Chapel Hill Town Council. There is no deadline for this grant program.
The comprehensive program was created to keep low-income residences up to the housing code, targeting problems including insulation, wiring and heat.
“For a homeowner to qualify for this grant, there has to be a minimum housing code violation,” said Community Development Planner Jamie Rohe of the council’s program. “But if a person is handicapped, we could also use the grant money for accessibilities such as a ramp, railings or handicapped toilet.”
Northside, which is located north of West Rosemary Street and west of North Columbia Street, is home to many households that qualify for affordable housing — earning less than 80 percent of the area’s median income.
Rohe said the council’s program also pays for no-interest, forgivable loans, which the homeowner doesn’t have to repay as long as he stays in the house for a set amount of time. Loans are offered for five, 10 and 15 years.
“We just want to make sure we don’t rehab someone’s house and then they go and sell it,” Rohe said, adding that the homeowner would only have to pay back the loan if he moves before his time is up.
Rohe said the loans typically pay for common home repairs such as a hole in the wall or a leaky roof. There have been about 20 applicants so far.
