CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 features assistance to military members forced to sell their homes amid the current housing market crisis. It is intended to assist those military homeowners who cannot 'ride out' the depressed real estate markets until the value of their homes can recover because they are moving due to a permanent change of station or they are moving because of a service member's injury or death. These situations increase financial hardships, damage credit, cause family tensions and negatively affect the mission.
The Recovery Act contains $555 million for the Defense Department to either buy a military member's house and sell it through a contractor; pay off the outstanding mortgage; pay up to 95 percent of the prior fair market value of the property, minus the fair market value at the time of the sale; or pay up to 90 percent of the prior fair market value as the purchase price when the Defense Department purchases the house. For actions such as foreclosures or private sale, this program also allows the Defense Department to go back and pay off a military homeowner's liabilities and work with a lender to correct the owner's credit.
This new program in the stimulus package is called the Homeowner's Assistance Fund. It is an extension of the benefits normally payable to homeowners near military bases that are being closed due to the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission. This program is aimed to assist those wounded and forced to move for medical reasons, surviving spouses of fallen service members and Defense Department personnel, or active-duty service members who are in the middle of foreclosure or unable to sell their home after receiving PCS orders greater than 50 miles from their current assignment. However, for those members receiving PCS orders, they must have owned their home prior to July 1, 2006 and must receive orders between Feb. 1, 2006 and Sept. 30, 2012.
The Army Corps of Engineers is responsible for the administering this new program. The Recovery Act policy regarding HAP has yet to be determined, so the Army Corps of Engineers is awaiting further guidance on the administration of the program. However, service members who believe they may qualify for assistance should complete an application, providing all requested information. Further information and guidance on package submission can be found on the Army Corps of Engineers' Web site at
http://hap.usace.army.mil/. Applications will be stamped with the date upon receipt and held until further guidance is provided. Once the Army Corps of Engineers receives guidance upon implementation of this program, applications will be processed in the order in which they were received.
If there are any further questions regarding this new program, please come by the legal office to see an attorney during legal assistance hours. Legal assistance is provided on a walk-in basis Tuesdays from noon to 1 p.m. for members in uniform and 1 to 3 p.m. for all members of the Charleston AFB community.