About the Homeowner Assistance Fund

March 15th, 2022

New Program Provides Funding to Homeowners Impacted by COVID-19

In January 2022, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) created the Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF), a $9.961 billion federal program to help households impacted by COVID-19. HAF is already helping thousands of homeowners pay mortgage, utility bills and other housing expenses. Homeowners are eligible to receive funding if they have and can attest to financial hardship experienced on or after January 21, 2020. They must also have household income equal to or less than 150% of the area median income or 100% of the national median income, whichever is greater.

HAF participants can provide HAF funds only for qualified expenses related to a primary residence. Homeowners must use the funds to prevent mortgage delinquencies, defaults or foreclosures or loss of utilities or home energy services. Qualified expenses include:

  • Mortgage payment assistance
  • Financial assistance to reinstate a mortgage or pay other housing-related costs related to forbearance, delinquency or default
  • Mortgage principal reduction, including second mortgages from nonprofits or government entities
  • Mortgage interest rate reductions 
  • Payment assistance for delinquent property taxes to prevent foreclosure

How is it working in your state?

Already, nearly 30 states have HAF programs. The rest are hard at work getting theirs off the ground. See below for details on the 11 states where BlueHub SUN is licensed for a status update.

If you have clients who are ineligible for the HAF program or who live in a state where it’s currently unavailable, we encourage you to consider BlueHub SUN as an alternative solution.

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Credit: The National Council of State Housing Agencies (NCSHA)
*The map is subject to change over time. To see the most recent version, go to the NCSHA website.

Under ARPA, Connecticut received roughly $123 million to establish MyHomeCT, which is funded by HAF. The Connecticut Housing Finance Authority (CHFA) administers the funds. Eligible homeowners must:

  • Be owner-occupants of a primary residence located in Connecticut
  • Have HHI equal to or less than 150% of AMI or 100% of the U.S. median income
  • Have a conforming loan (based on current loan limits set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency) 

On March 11, 2022, the Delaware State Housing Authority submitted a $50 million HAF plan to the U.S. Treasury and is currently waiting for approval. Eligible homeowners must:

  • Be owner-occupants of a primary residence located in Delaware
  • Have HHI equal to or less than 150% of AMI or 100% of the U.S. median income
  • Have a conforming loan (based on current loan limits set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency)

In April 2022, Illinois will begin to accept applications from homeowners for grants of up to $30,000 to eliminate or reduce past-due mortgage and property tax payments. Eligible homeowners must:

  • Be at least 30 days late on their mortgage or property tax payments
  • Have HHI equal to or less than 150% of AMI
  • Own and occupy their property as their primary residence

The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Developm​ent received $248 million to support the Maryland Homeowner Assistance Fund for three years. Eligible homeowners must:

  • Be delinquent and/or in forbearance for more than 3 months
  • Have HHI less than 100% of AMI for a grant or less than 150% of AMI for a loan
  • Must be owner-occupants of a primary residence located in Maryland
  • Have evidence of the deed of trust

The Massachusetts HAF Program is administered by the Massachusetts Housing Partnership and the Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency. Eligible homeowners must:

  • Have missed 3 or more mortgage payments due to COVID-related hardship
  • Be owner-occupants of a single-family, condominium or two-, three- or four-family primary residence located in Massachusetts
  • Have HHI equal to or less than 150% of AMI (differs by region and household size)
  • Have a conforming loan (based on current loan limits set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency)

On April 14, 2021, the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) received $242,812,277 to support the Michigan HAF (MIHAF) program. Eligible homeowners must:

  • Have HHI less than 150% of AMI
  • Own and occupy the property as their primary residence

Developed by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency (NJHMFA), the New Jersey Emergency Rescue Mortgage Assistance (ERMA) program provides up to $35,000 per household for COVID-related housing expenses. Eligible homeowners must:

  • Own and occupy an eligible one- to four-unit primary residence
  • Have been unable to remain current on mortgage payments
  • Have been current on mortgage and property taxes as of January 2020

The Ohio Housing Finance Agency (OHFA) allocated roughly $25 million in HAF funds to the Save the Dream Ohio program. Eligible homeowners must:

  • Have HHI below $112,375
  • Owe less than $432,500 on their mortgage
  • Have received unemployment benefits since January 1, 2014
  • Have been discharged from any bankruptcies

Under ARPA, the U.S. Treasury allocated $350 million to the Pennsylvania Homeowner Assistance Fund (PAHAF). Eligible homeowners must:

  • Be owner-occupants of a one- to four-unit primary residence located in Pennsylvania
  • Have HHI equal to or less than 150% of AMI (and meet income prioritization guidelines)
  • Have a conforming loan (based on current loan limits set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency)  

Due to a high volume of applications outpacing available funds, the Homeowner Assistance Fund Rhode Island (HAF-RI) program was suspended on March 14, 2022. RI homeowners seeking assistance are encouraged to:

The Wisconsin Help for Homeowners (WHH) received $92 million in federal funding to provide a maximum of $40,000 in assistance for eligible households. Eligible homeowners must:

  • Be owner-occupants of a primary residence one-, two- three- or four-family, duplex, condo or manufactured home located in Wisconsin
  • Have HHI equal to or less than 100% of AMI (and meet income prioritization guidelines)
  • Have a conforming loan (based on current loan limits set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency) 

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