HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — New financial help is now available for homeowners whose houses were damaged during the 2024 hurricane season.
Starting today, residents can apply for funding to rebuild or repair storm-damaged homes through the Homeowner Repair and Reconstruction Program. Eligible homeowners could qualify for up to $350,000 in assistance.
Tampa Bay 28 reporter Keely McCormick spoke with residents in Plant City who say they are still struggling to recover more than a year and a half after the storms.
Several service centers across the county are now open to help residents apply. Inside one of those centers, McCormick met homeowners who are still displaced and say the damage from the storms was both emotionally and financially devastating.
“There was like two and a half feet of water that came in. I lost everything,” said Brian Coffee from Plant City.
Janelle Johnson is in a similar position. She grew up in her Plant City home, later raising her son there with her husband.
“I had lived in that house all my life, we never flooded. There had never been a flood like this,” said Johnson.
Johnson says the storms wiped out furniture, the home, and generations of memories.
“We lost all of our furniture. We lost antique furniture because that was the family home, so that was the house we were raised in and that was the family hub where everyone came. Thanksgiving, Christmas so there was a lot that was lost,” said Johnson.
More than a year after the storms, she is still living with her brother in Temple Terrace.
It’s a story county officials say they are hearing again and again. That is where the Rebuilding for Tomorrow Homeowner Repair and Reconstruction Program was created.
Residents applying can live anywhere in the county. Hillsborough County was awarded $709 million by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Of that money, about $211 million will be dedicated to the Homeowner Repair and Reconstruction Program.
Residents can apply online or in person at one of the several service centers across Hillsborough County. Click here for the application and center addresses.
Share Your Story with Keely
From Brandon to Plant City and Sun City Center, Keely McCormick is dedicated to helping people who live in East Hillsborough County. If you have concerns about new development, access to needed resources, or the roads in your neighborhood, share your ideas with Keely below.
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