A new program being implemented in Craven County beginning this week will bring an early Christmas present to some local homeowners.
At the October 2 Board of Commissioners meeting, Chad Strawn, director of Planning and Inspections, announced that the county has received $162,000 through the NC Housing Finance Agency for the rehabilitation of three homes.
According to Strawn, the homes will be identified through an application intake process which started on October 3 and will last until October 24. He said the households chosen for repair will be identified by October 30, with an anticipated rehab start date in the second quarter of 2024.
Strawn said improvements to the three homes would include new roofing, repairing leaky windows, repairing plumbing and electrical issues, and the removal of any lead-based paint.
The application grading criteria will be based on proof of clear ownership of the home, the owner’s need, the number of dependents in the home age six and under, income, age, disabilities and military veteran status.
“Children ages zero to six are very susceptible to lead-based paint, that’s why they get more grading in the grading criteria,” Strawn explained.
The program provides an interest free, deferred forgiven loan to eligible homeowners to pay for certain rehabilitation costs to their house.
According to Strawn, the program will spend $40,000 to rehabilitate each of the structures. He said the NCHFA funds will be presented in the form of an annual loan of $8,000 that will be forgiven over a period of five years.
“As long as they own the structure for five years then they will not owe anything at the end of that period,” Strawn said.
Strawn said outreach to homeowners will be done through the county website and directly based on a list of properties identified by county staff. He asked commissioners to reach out to anyone in their districts that may meet the application criteria as well.
“If we don’t have a good phone number for them, we’re going to expedite the mailing to that property address,” Strawn noted.
Strawn said a construction management company would be hired to ensure that contractors working on the NCHFA rehabilitation projects complete the scope of work set forth for the homes.
“Once the three initial homes are complete we’ll be able to apply for additional funding to help more households that will be identified through this application process,” Strawn said.
For more information about the NCHFA program contact the Planning and Inspections Department at 252-636-6618 or check for updates on the county website, cravencountync.gov/.
By Todd Wetherington, co-editor. Send an email with questions or comments.