Housing rehabilitation grants were awarded to Milton Borough, Montour County, South Williamsport Borough, and the City of Sunbury.
This is the second time in 20 years these funds have been awarded to Milton Borough.
Each is receiving $500,000 for no-cost home repairs for eligible residents. Residents may be eligible for up to $65,000 in repairs to their homes, dependent upon local rehabilitation guidelines. The waitlists are currently full since the potential grant awards were publicized last year when the applications were submitted in September.
Work is expected to begin this fall.
The funds are from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development’s HOME program and were recently awarded to the communities by the state Department of Community and Economic Development.
Teri Provost, director of SEDA-Council of Government’s (SEDA-COG) Housing Rehabilitation program, spoke of the value of the program.
“We are passionate about empowering our communities to have the best, most affordable housing possible by rehabilitating existing homes at no cost to eligible homeowners,” Provost said. “When we partner with communities on these efforts, it helps the homeowner, it maintains the communities’ tax base, and it increases property values.”
Eligible repairs include structural, roofing, plumbing, electrical, heating/furnace, window replacement, radon and lead-based paint mitigation, and energy-related improvements. Also included are modifications for mobility-impaired residents. There is no cost to homeowners who maintain home residency over a five-year period from the date of signing.
SEDA-COG oversees the entire process for the homeowner, Provost said.
“We make the project easy on the homeowner by managing it from start to finish, including obtaining the contractor,” Provost said.
Interested homeowners who want to be on the waitlist for future grant opportunities may call SEDA-COG’s Stacy Anderson at 800-326-9310