BISMARCK - Northwood residents who have a money gap in their efforts to rebuild or repair tornado-stricken homes will get help from the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency.
The state Industrial Commission voted Wednesday to expand the housing agency's programs to accommodate people in Northwood by waiving some eligibility standards in the HomeAccess program.
Up to half of the program's entire $3.7 million in funds may go to Northwood. When the agency sells additional bonds, half the funds can also be allocated to Northwood, said Mike Anderson, executive director of the agency.
Northwood suffered more than $50 million in damage in the Aug. 26 twister that affected 90 percent of the single-family homes, 80 percent of the apartment units and 100 percent of the mobile homes.
Anderson said more than two dozen homes were destroyed and three dozen have major damage.
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His agency is committed to leading the state's long-term recovery aid to Northwood housing, he told the commission.
Anderson explained how the Housing Finance Agency would fill a gap in home building or repairing. A family with a house that was valued at $75,000 can't get an insurance payment to rebuild their home even if they had replacement coverage, because it may cost $150,000 to rebuild, he said. Plus the family probably also still has a mortgage on the house that is now gone or uninhabitable.
Anderson said the family could get some of the funds due them from insurance, plus a Small Business Administration 30-year loan at 3.1 percent interest, and the state agency would pay off the mortgage of the destroyed or damaged home.
One of the buildings destroyed was a 16-unit apartment building rented to mainly low-income residents who paid about $250 a month in rent, Anderson said. A Grand Forks firm, Crary Contracting, told him it has enough workers to rebuild the apartment building in as few as 60 days.
"Kind of like Extreme Makeover," Anderson said, referring to the ABC network show "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" that builds or rebuilds homes for deserving families in a matter of days.
Gov. John Hoeven asked Anderson to work with Adjutant Gen. Dave Sprynczynatyk and Emergency Services Director Greg Wilz to winterize Northwood homes that need it.
Cole works for Forum Communications Co., which owns The Forum. She can be reached at (701) 224-0830 or forumcap@btinet.net
Agency to help residents with repairs, rebuilding Janell Cole 20071018
