FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, January 19, 2018

 

Information Session to be Held in Neptune on January 25th for Participants of the RREM, LMI, and LRRP Programs

Trenton, NJ – The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) today announced the 47th Housing Recovery Information Session will be held Thursday, January 25, 2018, in Neptune to assist storm-affected homeowners participating in the Reconstruction, Rehabilitation, Elevation and Mitigation (RREM) Program and the Low- to Moderate-Income (LMI) Homeowner Rebuilding Program, as well as rental property owners participating in the Landlord Rental Repair Program (LRRP). 

The Information Session will be held from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Shark River Hills Firehouse, 200 Brighton Avenue, Neptune, NJ, 07753, to provide individualized, hands-on assistance to help eligible RREM Program, LMI Program and LRRP participants with any housing recovery questions or issues they might have.

Approximately 2,700 participants have attended previous Information Sessions held since October 2014 in communities within the nine counties (Atlantic, Bergen, Cape May, Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, and Union) most impacted by Sandy, as determined by the federal government. This will be the second Information Session held in Neptune, one of the communities impacted by the storm. Numerous Information Sessions have been held in other Monmouth County communities affected by Sandy.

Representatives from DCA’s Sandy Recovery Division and Housing Recovery Centers will be present at the Information Session, as well as RREM and LRRP Program Managers, who can answer specific questions about the RREM Program, LMI Program and LRRP. Additionally, representatives of the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs will be available to discuss best practices in selecting a reliable contractor to undertake rebuilding work. 

Housing Counselors from the Sandy Recovery Housing Counseling Program will also be in attendance to offer RREM Program and LMI Program participants free HUD-certified housing counseling services for a wide array of housing-related issues, including foreclosure prevention, mortgages, budgeting, and rental guidance. 

The $1.3 billion RREM Program is the State’s largest Superstorm Sandy housing recovery program. RREM provides grants to Sandy-impacted homeowners to cover rebuilding costs up to $150,000 that are not otherwise funded by insurance, FEMA assistance, U.S. Small Business Administration loans, or other sources. Similarly, the $50 million LMI Homeowner Rebuilding Program provides up to $150,000 in reconstruction, rehabilitation and elevation assistance to Sandy-impacted homeowners of limited financial means who did not apply to the RREM Program. Together, the RREM and LMI programs have already rebuilt approximately 5,950 Sandy damaged homes.

The $54 million LRRP provides up to $50,000 per storm-damaged rental unit to assist eligible rental property owners in repairing their residential rental properties. To be eligible for the award, a landlord must rent the repaired unit(s) to LMI households after project completion. To date, approximately 415 units have been repaired and are now occupied by LMI households. 

For more details about the Information Session, applicants may contact the DCA’s Sandy Constituent Services Office by calling 609-292-3750 or by emailing sandy.recovery@dca.nj.gov.  

For more information on the Sandy Recovery Housing Counseling Program, people can visit www.renewjerseystronger.org/homeowners/sandy-recovery-housing-counseling-program/. 

 

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CONTACT:
Lisa Ryan
Tammori Petty
(609) 292-6055