FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, July 12, 2016

 

Information Session to be held in Toms River on July 19th to Answer RREM, LMI, and LRRP Program Applicants’ Questions about Rebuilding Their Properties 

TRENTON, NJ – The Christie Administration today announced that the 36th Information Session will be held Tuesday, July 19th, 2016, at the Toms River Township Municipal Building to provide personal assistance for storm-affected homeowners participating in the Reconstruction, Rehabilitation, Elevation and Mitigation (RREM) Program and the LMI Homeowner Rebuilding Program, as well as for 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. in the Council Meeting Room of the Toms River Municipal Building, 33 Washington Street, 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.

More than 2,000 applicants have attended the previous Information Sessions held since October 2014 in communities hard hit by Superstorm Sandy. This will be the fourth Information Session held in Toms River, one of the communities most impacted by the storm. The previous Information Sessions in Toms River were held in October 2014, June 2015, and October 2015.

Information Sessions are designed to provide one-on-one attention to address homeowners’ questions that arise during all stages in their RREM or LMI Program process. This Information Session is also offering assistance to property owners in LRRP, which is designed to restore rental units that were damaged by Superstorm Sandy and rent the units to low-to-moderate income (LMI) households at approved affordable rents following completion of repairs.

Information Sessions have been held in each of the nine counties the federal government determined were most impacted by Superstorm Sandy (Atlantic, Bergen, Cape May, Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, and Union).

“Homeowners and landlords in our housing recovery programs can use the Information Session to address challenges they may be facing in their individual rebuilding process, determine new action items, and educate themselves about best practices and key information as they move through the process,” said DCA Commissioner Charles A. Richman, whose Department administers many of the State’s Sandy housing recovery initiatives.

Representatives from the DCA’s Sandy Recovery Division and Housing Recovery Centers, as well as RREM and LRRP Program Managers, who can answer specific questions about the RREM Program, LMI Program and LRRP, will be present. 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.

Furthermore, information will be available about the Rental Assistance Program (RAP), which was launched last year to help homeowners in the RREM Program and LMI Program pay for temporary housing while their primary homes are being repaired, rebuilt or elevated. Through the RAP initiative, homeowners who have signed their grant agreement and meet other eligibility criteria are eligible for up to $1,300 per month for up to a total of 21 months of rental assistance.

The RREM Program is the largest of the housing recovery programs launched by the State following Superstorm Sandy. The program provides grants to Sandy-impacted homeowners to cover rebuilding costs up to $150,000 that are not funded by insurance, FEMA assistance, U.S. Small Business Administration loans, or other sources.

The LMI Homeowners Rebuilding Program provides reconstruction, rehabilitation and elevation assistance to Sandy-impacted homeowners of limited financial means whose storm-damaged primary residence is located in one of the nine most impacted counties as determined by the federal government. The program aims to provide assistance to those LMI homeowners who did not apply to the RREM Program.

The LRRP Program 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.

For more information on 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 and the Rental Assistance Program, people can visit www.renewjerseystronger.org/homeowners/sandy-recovery-housing-counseling-program/ and www.nj.gov/dca/hmfa/homeownership/owners/ssbg/index.shtml. 

CONTACT:
Lisa Ryan
(609) 292-6055