Oklahoma City Homeowners May Be Eligible For Help With Hail Damage Home Repairs

Oklahoma City homeowners whose homes were damaged by the recent hail storms can apply for a grant from the city to help with home repairs.

Friday, June 4th 2010, 3:10 pm

By: News 9


By Charles Bassett, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY-- Oklahoma City homeowners whose homes were damaged by the recent hail storms can apply for a grant from the city to help with home repairs.

The money is available every year to help low income families and right now there's not a long waiting list.

Contractors are putting the finishing touches on Mark Magerus' home. He got a new roof and a new paint job.

"The roofers, they got done in about four days and did a really clean job," Magerus said.

Magerus is disabled and doesn't have insurance, so he qualified for federal grant money through the Oklahoma City Housing Exterior Maintenance Program. He didn't have to pay any money out of his pocket for the repairs.

"This program really helps people out that are low income, stuff like that," Magerus said.

Michelle Henderson found herself in a similar situation. She has insurance, but not enough to cover a new roof plus the windows she lost in the hail storm. With the grant money, she spent nothing on a new home.

Oklahoma City gets about $400,000 a year from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to fund the program. Families who qualify can get up to $13,500 for repairs.

"We only address exterior maintenance violations which means if the siding was damaged to the property or the roofing or broken windows, we can do all those things," Bob Dailey with the city of Oklahoma City said.

It takes anywhere from three to six months to go through the approval process. Some homeowners were already enrolled when the hail storm hit so the timing couldn't have been better for them to get their repairs done.

"I don't regret it," said Henderson. "People need to get out there and get their application in to see if they qualify because it's available."

If you live in rental property or a mobile home those homes do not qualify for the program.

Check with your own municipality to see if such a program is available.

Housing Rehabilitation Programs:

Oklahoma City – 405-297-2846

Midwest City – 405-739-1216

Norman – 405-366-5322

The City's Housing Exterior Maintenance Program provides grants of up to $13,500 to income-qualified families to help with the cost of materials and labor necessary to make exterior repairs. They can be used to pay for roofing, broken windows, damaged siding, carpentry and other exterior repairs. The City will inspect the property and identify needed repairs and will inspect the work before and after completion.

To qualify for the grant, residents must own and reside at the property and have a family income that is at or below federal income guidelines. Income limits range from a single household of $32,750 to a household of eight with an income of $61,800.

Grants are given out on a first come first serve basis as long as funds exist.

For more information about the program or to request a grant application contact the City's Housing Programs Office, 420 West Main Street, St 1040 or call 297-2846.

The city also contracts with the Community Action Agency to help homeowners weatherize or make emergency home repairs. For more information on this program, contact the Community Action Agency at 232-0199.

logo

Get The Daily Update!

Be among the first to get breaking news, weather, and general news updates from News 9 delivered right to your inbox!

More Like This

June 4th, 2010

March 22nd, 2024

March 14th, 2024

February 9th, 2024

Top Headlines

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024