In the months following a major disaster, communities often experience a new — or worsened — housing crisis due to damaged homes and buildings, a lack of temporary housing, and skyrocketing rent prices. As Blue Ridge Public Radio reported, estimates suggest 126,000 homes were damaged by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina. In Buncombe County, where Asheville is, hundreds of residential buildings were damaged or destroyed — and rental stock was already in short supply in western North Carolina before the storm.
Hundreds more are facing evictions two months after the storm. Many people are still waiting on Federal Emergency Management Agency aid for housing assistance. FEMA is starting to send trailers to the area, but many people are still living in tents as temperatures drop below freezing.
There are options for both renters and homeowners needing help with rent and mortgage payments, rebuilding assistance, utility payments, and more. Grist and Blue Ridge Public Radio put together a guide to help residents in eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina navig... Read more
