COVID-era program to aid Kansas homeowners to soon close

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - A program meant to help Kansas homeowners stay recent on their mortgages during the COVID pandemic has been financially exhausted and will soon close.

The Kansas Housing Resources Corporation announced on Tuesday, Feb. 21, that the Kansas Homeowner Assitance Fund has dispersed nearly all its funds and will soon close. It said the program is federally funded and was a temporary emergency program meant to support homeowners who experienced difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

KHRC noted that KHAF was established with funds from the American Rescue Plan Act and helped residents who qualify get current on their mortgage payments and avoid foreclosure. Since the program launched in April 2022, it said it has provided $42,599,772 to 3,797 homes.

Now, officials indicated that the program has been pushed into the Hold Phase, the second of three closure phases. On Jan. 30, Kansans were encouraged to apply for assistance as soon as possible. The program has now received enough applications to exhaust all current funds.

KHRC said applications submitted during the Final Funding Phase will still be reviewed and processed, subject to available funding.

Officials noted that the last phase of the closure process is the closure phase. This is when all program funds are exhausted and will allow the program to officially close and stop accepting new applications.

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