Hurricane Milton destroyed large parts of Manasota Key, Fla., on Oct. 11. The Biden administration on Friday extended a foreclosure moratorium on areas ravaged by Hurricanes Milton and Helene until April 11. File Photo by Cristobal Herrera-Ulashkevich/EPA-EFE
Dec. 6 (UPI) — The Biden administration on Friday announced it has extended a foreclosure moratorium on homeowners holding federally insured mortgages in regions devastated by Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
The Federal Housing Administration, part of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, announced it is extending a moratorium prohibiting lenders from foreclosing on FHA-insured mortgages in those areas through April 11.
The moratoriums affect Single Family Title II forward and Home Equity Conversion Mortgages backed by the agency and issued to homeowners in presidentially declared major disaster areas.
The move extends automatic 90-day moratoriums that were issued three months ago in the wake of the storms and provide victims additional time to access governmental housing resources, consult with housing counselors and/or to rebuild their homes.
“Because the consecutive Hurricanes Helene and Milton caused a great deal of damage and disruption, FHA believes it is appropriate to extend our foreclosure moratoriums by 120 days,” Federal Housing Commissioner Julia Gordon said in a statement. “This extension will provide more time for homeowners to review a range of options with their mortgage servicer if they are unable to resume regular mortgage payments due to the impact of the disaster.”
President Joe Biden issued disaster declarations for certain areas of Georgia, Florida (Helene), Florida (Milton), North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia in connection with the two hurricanes.
“When disaster strikes, we know that families and communities need not only resources, but time to recover,” said HUD Agency Head Adrianne Todman. “Today, by extending our foreclosure moratorium, we continue the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to help those affected by the catastrophic Hurricanes Helene and Milton to repair and rebuild their homes, communities, and lives.”
Meanwhile, in an effort to better prepare for such disasters, HUD and the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced Friday they have concluded a summit meeting to launch their Pre-Disaster Housing Initiative.
The new project aims to help states develop plans to improve their post-disaster housing capabilities with a goal of mitigating potential housing shortfalls in communities when disasters strike. State officials and emergency managers from Kentucky, Michigan and Missouri will participate in the eight-month initiative, during which they will develop a disaster housing strategy that can be executed when needed.
“This initiative is designed to strengthen relationships between emergency management and housing agencies both within a state and between the states in the cohort,” said Colt Hagmaier, FEMA’s assistant administrator for recovery. “This partnership remains a priority for both FEMA and HUD and we are thrilled to see the exponential impacts of this initiative throughout the nation.”
Todman called on Congress to pass Biden’s $12 billion request for HUD’s Disaster Recover Funding “so we can help Americans rebuild their homes, now.”
“Without the $12 billion that we have requested through the president, simply said, the homes of thousands upon thousands of Americans will never be rebuilt,” she said during congressional testimony last month. “And their communities will have a housing shortage the likes that they have never seen before.”