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Hardest Hit Fund: Who Is Eligible?

An applicant who is:

  • An Indiana homeowner, owning only one home and currently living in that home,
  • An unemployment insurance recipient,
  • And a participant of approved training, education or volunteer work.

Other foreclosure prevention assistance may be available for applicants who do not meet these qualifications. Please complete the application and someone will contact you.

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Indiana’s Hardest Hit Funding Update

Frequently Asked Questions for Building The Bridge To Recovery (Indiana's Hardest-Hit Fund)

Program Summary

The U.S. Department of the Treasury established the Housing Finance Agency Innovation Fund for the Hardest-Hit Markets (Hardest Hit Fund) in early 2010 to provide financial assistance to families in the states most impacted by the downturn of the housing market. In August 2010, U.S. Treasury announced that Indiana would receive $83 million to help *unemployed homeowners pay their mortgage. In September, an additional $139 million was added to this funding making the total investment for Hoosiers over $222 Million.

The Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA) who oversees the Indiana Foreclosure Prevention Network (IFPN) will administer the program as an additional tool offered to troubled borrowers through IFPN and will offer individuals who are unemployed and eligible for unemployment insurance benifits. This assistance consists of a monthly benefit to cover a portion of their first mortgage and related expenses while the individual seeks new employment.  Assistance in bringing mortgage payments current is also available for those individuals who were unemployed and eligible for unemployment insurance benefits but are now re-employed and able to make monthly mortgage obligations moving forward.   Additional underwriting criteria may apply.

IHCDA, under the direction of Lieutenant Governor Becky Skillman, the Indiana Department of Workforce Development and the Indiana Foreclosure Prevention Network have partnered to develop a comprehensive, statewide strategy. The plan aims to assist over 13,392 homeowners who are experiencing financial hardship and are at-risk of mortgage loan default or foreclosure. Indiana's HHF program, Building the Bridge to Recovery, will assist homeowners with financial hardships who have been unable to qualify for existing loan modification and foreclosure prevention programs.

*Unemployed and eligible for unemployment insurance benifits.

 

Need Help Now?

If you are behind on your mortgage or struggling to afford your monthly payments, don't wait-- help is free. Call the Indiana Foreclosure Prevention Network helpline at 1-877-GET-HOPE today or click on the "Apply Online" tab on this website to learn more about IFPN and Building the Bridge to Recovery.

HoosierCorps is the name of the HHF volunteer service program, and is one of the three types of structured activities HHF clients may select to comply with HHF guidelines. HoosierCorps allows HHF clients to volunteer by matching client skills, abilities, and interests with volunteer opportunities at non-profit organizations in their communities. HHF clients will be able to choose from a variety of volunteer opportunities by contacting one of several non-profit agencies in their community, where they will volunteer 40 hours per month while receiving HHF benefits.

More information on HoosierCorps may be found by contacting hhfvolunteer@ihcda.in.gov. 

 

Approved HHF clients must either fulfill requirements under approved education/training (see above) or requirements under the approved HoosierCorps Volunteer Program. For more information on the HoosierCorps Volunteer Program, please see the HoosierCorps Volunteer Program Participant Manual at www.877gethope.org and also as an addendum to this handbook.

If an approved HHF client chooses to fulfill their requirements under the HoosierCorps program, then counselors need to do the following:

1) Create an email to Hhfvolunteer@ihcda.in.gov and include the HHF underwriter in the cc: of the message.

2) Put "HHF VSP Client" in the subject line.

3) Provide the following information:

      a. Data of Agreement (date of closing)

      b. First and Last Name

      c. Home Address(include street address, city and zip code).

      d. Email Address

      e. Phone with Area Code.

4) Once the email is received, a confirmation email will be sent back to the counselor within 2 business days, indicating that the client's information has been forwarded to the nearest regional administrator of the HoosierCorps program. Contact information for the regional administrator will be included.

5)  File copies of the originating email and the response in the client's CounselorDirect file.

*If client is working part time they do not have to participate in volunteer program......

 

Approved Education and Training for HHF: 

1.Progress made toward an Individual Training Account approved certification/degree.

2.Progress made towards educational programs accessible through accredited institutions that are eligible to receive payments on behalf of students under the Free Application for Federal Student Aid; this would include two-year and four-year degree programs. Information on FAFSA eligible degrees may be found at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

3.Progress made toward an approved certification per the Indiana Department of Workforce Development. A list of these is found at https://www.indianacareerconnect.com/training.asp.

4.Progress made toward licensure approved by the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. A list of these is found at www.in.gov/pla/.

5.Progress made toward Indiana Trade Adjustment Assistance Certifications. A list of these is found at www.in.gov/dwd/2422.htm.

6.Progress made toward other job training/education that does not meet one of these criteria, must be approved in writing by HHF staff. This request (from HHF Specialist to the Underwriter) must include a detailed explanation of the training/education and also must include a statement that the Specialist verified that it did not fit into any of the four above-listed categories of accepted training/education. Approval in these cases is at the discretion of HHF staff. 

 

Additional Hardest Hit Fund Information

HHF Quarterly Report to the U.S. Department of Treasury

IHCDA is required to submit Housing Finance Agency (HFA) Hardest-Hit Fund (HHF) data that includes quarterly borrower characteristic data and program specific performance data. All HFA HHF data submitted to must be accurate, complete, and in agreement with retained HFA records. Data should be reported by each state HFA by the 15th of the month following the quarter.

View Indiana's Hardest Hit Fund Quarterly Report (Q4) as submitted to Treasury January 20, 2011.

View previous submitted quarterly reports by clicking below.

Indiana's Hardest Hit Fund Quarterly Report (Q2) as submitted to Treasury July 15, 2011.

Indiana Hardest Hit Fund Quarterly Report (Q3)  as submitted to Treasury October 14, 2011.

 

Hardest Hit Fund Housing Counseling Agency Request for Proposals  

Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (“IHCDA”) requests proposals from qualified housing counseling agencies that are members of the Indiana Foreclosure Prevention Network and/or are HUD-approved to provide services under the Indiana Hardest-Hit Fund Unemployment Bridge Program (“UBP”) as specified in this Request for Proposals (“RFP”).

*Note that IHCDA may select multiple housing counseling agencies under  this RFP.

Download the RFP

Download the Streamlined Application

*Note that the streamlined application is only available to agencies that were previously awarded a HHF and/or IFPN grant from 2011-2012.