Article Summary –
According to a Treasury Department report, over 500,000 families avoided home foreclosures due to financial assistance from the American Rescue Plan. The 2021 legislation created the Homeowner Assistance Fund, which provided over $9.4 billion to states for homeowners’ mortgage payments, insurance costs, and utility bills after the expiration of the 2020 CARES Act’s moratorium on foreclosures. The report determined that 77% of the original funds have been used, and 22 states and two U.S. territories have used all of their allocated funds.
Treasury Department Shows 500,000 Families Avoided Foreclosure via American Rescue Plan Assistance
According to a report by the Treasury Department from March 19, 500,000+ families evaded home foreclosure thanks to financial aid from a program within the American Rescue Plan.
Passed in 2021, the American Rescue Plan was President Joe Biden’s landmark response to the COVID-19 economic impact. One crucial aspect was the creation of the Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF), which distributed $9.4 billion to states to aid homeowners with mortgages, insurance, and utility bills.
The HAF became essential when foreclosure moratoriums from the 2020 CARES Act were due to expire in July 2021.
Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said in a statement that the Biden-Harris Administration helped prevent a foreclosure crisis and increased housing stability nationwide by helping half a million families keep their homes.
The Treasury report showed that 77% of the original HAF funds have been utilized and 22 states along with two U.S. territories used up all the funds allocated to them.
In Michigan, more than $242 million in federal assistance reached 27,381 homeowners through the Michigan Homeowner Assistance Fund, launched by Governor Gretchen Whitmer in February 2022 via the Michigan State Housing Development Authority.
Despite facing unified opposition from Republicans, the Rescue Plan passed with Democratic votes, with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the tiebreaking vote in the Senate. All Michigan Democratic delegates supported the bill’s passage.
President Biden has advocated for further homeowner aid. In his State of the Union speech, he urged Congress to pass legislation providing tax credits for first-time homeowners, assisting first-generation homeowners with down payments and funding renovation of over 2 million homes to increase housing supply and lower costs.
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