TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) announced that Florida's nation-leading Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF) program has awarded over $380 million in relief to assist 15,664 of the state's most vulnerable homeowners with their mortgage and other homeowner expenses, with more than $13 million awarded this week alone. DEO continues to assist applicants on an expedited timeline.HomeownerAssistanceFund@DEO.MyFlorida.com. As we are seeing a reduced number of applicants seeking assistance through the in-person HAF Customer Assistance Centers, the following updates will be made to the center's operations: Customer Assistance Center locations will limit their days of operation to Monday - Wednesday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The Customer Assistance Center locations in Tampa, Jacksonville, Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Miami Gardens, Tallahassee, and Pensacola will remain open through 5:00 p.m., on Wednesday, September 28, 2022, and will close permanently on Thursday, September 29, 2022. All applicants can still get assistance by calling 833-987-8997, or emailing"Every day, we hear from Florida homeowners about how the HAF program has helped them keep their families in their homes and how our team's quick action has stopped active foreclosures," said DEO Secretary Dane Eagle. "The DEO team continues to expedite relief to Florida homeowners and stands ready to assist applicants and approved Florida homeowners." |
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RESOURCES FOR APPLICANTS Floridians who are seeking assistance with the status of their applications should be aware of scams, including individuals who ask for cash in exchange for assistance or access to your account information. We encourage those who have questions regarding their funding to call the Homeowner Assistance Fund Customer Assistance Center at 833-987-8997. Florida HAF's Customer Assistance Center has answered more than 146,000 incoming calls, assisting Floridians with their questions. Also, Florida HAF's Customer Assistance Center has made more than 27,000 outbound calls to respond to inquiries and ensure homeowners were able to find the link sent to them and access their application so they could complete their application. DEO remains committed to expediting relief to the state's most vulnerable homeowners until available funding is exhausted and working closely with mortgage lenders and service providers to ensure payments are applied to homeowners' accounts timely and accurately.For Florida homeowners with unmet needs, other resources are available to assist eligible individuals with utility bills and other homeowner expenses through the Community Services Block Grant, the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, and the Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program. UPDATES FOR CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE CENTERS
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PROGRAM OUTREACH AND TRANSPARENCY The state of Florida is running the most transparent HAF program in the nation. Various outreach and transparency initiatives have been undertaken through case management, earned and paid advertising, and information sharing on DEO's Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn accounts to encourage eligible Floridians to register or apply for assistance and to assist them throughout the registration and application process. A total of 874 outreach events were facilitated through:
Florida's HAF program outreach efforts were coordinated with:
Additionally, DEO has taken the following steps to keep Florida HAF program applicants informed:
Based on the funds allocated to Florida, and our tremendous outreach to Floridians, the HAF program received more Tier 1 applications than funding allocated to Florida. While this is great news that we will spend all the available funds and maximize the number of Floridians served, this means we may not be able to serve every applicant. |
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About HAF Florida's Homeowner Assistance Fund is designed to mitigate financial hardships associated with the COVID-19 pandemic by preventing homeowners’ mortgage delinquencies, defaults, foreclosures, and displacements, as well as by providing assistance with home energy services, internet, property and/or flood insurance, property taxes, and homeowner or condominium association fees. Eligible Florida homeowners may receive up to $50,000 in assistance. |
About DEO
The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity combines the state’s economic, workforce, and community development efforts, expediting economic development projects to fuel job creation in competitive communities and promote economic resiliency. For more information, including valuable resources for employers and job seekers, please visit www.FloridaJobs.org.
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