A lot of people struggle to pay for housing expenses across the country. Unfortunately, even households and individuals that are on track with housing expenses can  find themselves cost-burdened. This is why the federal government focuses on helping people that cannot afford housing expenses. Furthermore, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) designed housing support options to support people who need housing assistance.

Available HUD Housing Aid Opportunities

Everyone has different housing needs and concerns and that is why the HUD provides different types of programs. Some of these programs include:

• FHA Loans
• Good Neighbor Next Door (GNND) Program
• Housing Choice Voucher Program
• Public Housing
• HUD Houses That Are Up For Sale

FHA Loans

The HUD has a housing agency called the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). This agency will offer insurance for loans from qualifying lenders to borrowers. Through these insurances, the agency decreases the financial risk that lenders go through. This serves as a form of protection against financial losses so lenders can offer loans to more people. The protection aims to offer a claim for any primary balance that still remains when the loan defaults from the borrower. Some of the best things about this kind of loan are that borrowers could be eligible for the following:

• Reduced requirements on the down payment as opposed to some traditional housing loans
• Reduced requirements on credit score as opposed to some traditional housing loans

The FHA Offers the Following Loans

What may be surprising to people is that there are a variety of FHA-insured loans available. Due to this variety, borrowers can best utilize one that more closely aligns to their current situations. The follow are types of loans that you can expect to come across:

• Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs)
• Section 245(a) Loans
• 203(k) Improvement Loans
• Energy-Efficient Mortgages

Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs): Another name for this type of loan is a reverse mortgage. Only those in a certain age group can benefit from this opportunity. This means the elderly that are 62 years of age or older. The main advantage to these mortgages is that individuals can use their home equity to receive cash and still keep the home’s title.

Section 245(a) Loans: This kind of loan is a suitable opportunity for those that anticipate an increase in their income. These loans offer a lowered payment per month which slowly increases with time.

203(k) Improvement Loans: All homes are different and are in varying conditions. There are some houses out there that need some extra tender love and care (basically just additional repairs and improvements). This kind of loan takes that into consideration by offering extra funds.

Energy-Efficient Mortgages: Some houses are not as efficient as others when it comes to energy. For people who want to work on their home’s energy performance, they should consider this kind of loan. This loan offers extra funds to pay for the expenses that come with making a home more efficient with its energy performance.

Good Neighbor Next Door (GNND) Program

There are some programs that support specific groups of people, like the GNND program. This housing aid program is meant to support people that have an eligible job. These jobs include the following:

• Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs)
• Teacher roles (from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade)
• Firefighting
• Law Enforcement

Those that work these specific jobs can find the GNND program useful. The GNND program offers recipients a 50% discount on a house’s purchase price. However, those that receive benefits should stay in the house as their main residence for at least 36 months. Only specific houses and properties can participate in the GNND program.

Housing Choice Voucher Program

A very popular housing aid program is the Housing Choice Voucher program or Section 8. This program offers eligible recipients housing vouchers that they can use on housing in the private market. That includes rent and/or buying a home (in some cases). This program typically supports people with rental expenses, but properties need to accept housing vouchers as a form of payment.

Recipients have the chance of looking for the home they want, but it needs to meet the requirements mentioned above. Additionally, the property needs to meet other conditions such as a housing inspection. Despite the fact that the federal government provides this option, local Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) are responsible for the program’s management and administration. They are also the ones to handle the inspection! Furthermore, local PHAs are the places to go to submit your application and answer any of your questions. This program is meant to support those who face housing struggles, so local PHAs consider the following conditions for people to be eligible, such as:

• Level of Income
• Citizenship and Household Status
• Background of Criminal Activities and Eviction

Public Housing

Public housing is another great housing aid opportunity that helps recipients find affordable housing. Typically, public housing is pictured as apartments. However, there are many forms of public housing out there. Local housing agencies (HAs) are responsible for the program’s management, which is why it differs based on location. However, to qualify, the local HA takes into account the following eligibility requirements:

• References
• Level of Income
• Citizenship and Household Status

If you are unaware of the importance of references, then you should know more about them! Local HAs consider references to find out whether the applicant was a good tenant. If someone meets all of the other eligibility criteria, then the program might still refuse their application because of their references. To start applying, you should contact your local HA.

HUD Houses That are Up For Sale

There are many different kinds of housing to consider when you are looking to purchase a home. One specific type of home to consider are homes that faced foreclosure. However, every home that faced foreclosure is different. Some of these homes are made available exclusively through the HUD. This is because these properties were from an FHA loan and the HUD is responsible for re-selling them. If you want to look through these particular types of properties, then you can look through the HUD Home Store. If you find a home that you want to buy, then you should contact a broker that is registered with and approved by the government.

In Conclusion

With housing aid, there are many programs to think of. There are local, state, and federal housing support programs out there. However, this article highlights particular federal assistance programs that can help your housing issue. These assistance programs come from the HUD and are as follows:

• FHA Loans
• Good Neighbor Next Door (GNND) Program
• Housing Choice Voucher Program
• Public Housing
• HUD Homes for Sale

No matter what kind of housing aid opportunity you choose, you should remember that there could be more hope to your situation than you think. You just need to explore your options and find the one that suits you!