Funding of Housing Programs

The City of Rome currently funds its housing programs by using Community Home Investment Program (CHIP) funds from the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) and from its annual CDBG Entitlement funds issued from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

These funds can be used for the creation of affordable, decent housing units through: new construction, rehabilitation of existing units, or home buyer assistance. The City has used the CHIP program for down payment and/ or closing cost assitance, homeowner rehabilitation and new home construction in the past.

Down Payment Assitance Program

The City of Rome Community Development Department, in partnership with the Applachian Housing Counseling Agency (AHCA), is administering a down payment assistance program for Floyd County. The program is designed to assist first time home buyers purchasing single-family houses, townhouses or condominiums in the corporate limits of the City of Rome. Qualified applicants can receive funds in the form of a 5 year, 0% deferred forgivable loan to be used toward their down payment and closing costs. Your household income must fall within 80% of the area median income as established by HUD for Floyd County. The amount of funds you can receive will depend on where you fall on the income scale. For more information, call our office at 706-236-4475 or the AHCA office at 706-378-9917.

Minor Repair Program

The Minor Repair Program was established in 2007 and is funded through annual CDBG Entitlement funds to provide assistance to low income residents for minor household repairs to their homes. The program is limited to families at or below 50% of the area median income. Minor home repairs may include the following areas of functions in non-painted areas of homes built prior to 1978: (for a complete list of eligible repairs, please contact AHRC at 706-378-9917)

Senior Housing Moderate Repair Program

The City of Rome is offering a Senior Housing Rehabilitation Program to provide financial assistance to qualified low-income senior homeowners, who live within the city limits of Rome, to complete basic repairs. Funding for this program comes from the Georgia Department of Community Affairs' 2009 Community Home Investment  Program. To be eligible to receive housing rehabilitation assistance, you must be 65 years of age or older and live in the housing prior to making an application. Applications will be handled on first come first served basis.

Applications are to be made at the Appalachian Housing and Redevelopment Corporation Office, 800 Avenue B, during regular business hours, which are: 9 AM to 5 PM weekdays. If you have any questions concerning the Senior Housing Rehabilitation Program , or any of the application procedures, please contact Dedee Sanderson at the Appalachian Housing and Redevelopment Corporation at 706-368-5731 or Beverly Farmer at 706-236-4475.

Fund availability will apply.

Housing is for Everyone: Rome-Floyd County Plan

 In the fall of 2008, the City of Rome and Floyd County were selected to participate in the Georgia Initiative for Community Housing (GICH). GICH is a three - year program of planning, training, and technical assistance sponsored by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the University of Georgia, and the Georgia Municipal Association. Participation in GICH was a logical extension of Rome's long history of involvement in housing and neighborhood redevelopment. The GICH selection was impetus to form a local housing team and to develop a coordinated effort that would address a broad range of housing needs in the community.

At its first GICH retreat, in February 2009, the Rome and Floyd County Housing Team discussed the large number of housing activities in the community and the wide range of organizations involved in housing. While a source of strength and vitality, the many community-based resources also create a risk that Rome's housing activities could take a scattershot approach or potentially work at cross purposes. The various community housing programs and related organizations have their own planning documents and housing goals, each developed independently of one another. The disparate planning and housing documents in the community represent both a resource and a challenge to the creation of a concentrated housing effort. Through this document, the Housing Team builds on the work of many others to outline a single action plan for housing in Rome and Floyd County. It is our intention to use the Housing is for Everyone Plan as a vehicle to communicate with the community at large the housing needs. For more information please read the Housing is for Everyone Brochure.