New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency

Christie Administration Assists Displaced Passaic Fire Survivors

For Immediate Release:
October 23, 2015
Contact:
Tammori Petty
,
Emike Omogbai
609-292-6055

Department of Community Affairs Provides Resources to Help Residents Find Affordable Transitional and Long-Term Housing

TRENTON, NJ - New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) Commissioner Charles A. Richman today announced that resources are available for Passaic City residents who may be displaced from their homes due to damage from the recent fire at Gregory Avenue. The department is encouraging those affected to access the New Jersey Housing Resource Center, an online tool, to quickly find affordable housing listings.

"It is critical that as many housing options as possible be made available to Passaic residents displaced by the fire," said DCA Commissioner Charles A. Richman, who also serves as chairman of the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency (HMFA). "Therefore, we are encouraging property providers to consider adjusting lease terms to help quickly accommodate households who lost their homes in the fire. We are also urging them to take advantage of this free and easy way to promote their open units." 

The DCA has asked Catholic Families and Community Services, one of its Paterson-based Homelessness Prevention Program (HPP) grantees, to coordinate  with the mayor's office to provide relocation assistance to displaced families. Additionally, DCA's Passaic field office is working to help its Housing Choice Voucher Program clients locate and  quickly move into new apartments. The New Jersey Division of Fire Safety has also offered its assistance with the investigation if requested.

The HMFA, an affiliate of the DCA, has notified more than 6,000 housing partners of the need for vacant housing units and is working with local property owners  to secure additional availability.  Local property providers are urged to list available rentals with the New Jersey Housing Resource Center by going to http://www.njhrc.gov/ and clicking on "Add Housing." The free process of listing an available unit takes no more than 10 minutes, and can be done online or by calling 1-877-428-8844.

"We will continue to provide updates  and new listings daily in the weeks to come," said HMFA Executive Director Anthony L. Marchetta. "Quickly stabilizing these impacted residents' lives will help them return to a semblance of normalcy and give them the foundation they need to recover from being displaced from their homes."

The HRC website centralizes rental listings provided by the New Jersey Apartment Association, the New Jersey Association of Realtors, property owners, and others to create a marketplace that serves both prospective renters and landlords.

For more information on the Housing Resource Center, visit http://www.njhrc.gov.

For more information on the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, visit http://www.nj.gov/dca.