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New firm hired to manage Road Home rental program
Adding to the failures of its signature rental-housing recovery program, the state acknowledged Wednesday that it hasn't fulfilled a pre-Christmas promise to pay advances to mom-and-pop landlords seeking loans to fix their storm-damaged properties.
Since its inception in January 2007, the Road Home's $869 million small-rental program has barely gotten off the ground, leaving more than 10,000 rental units in the lurch.
However, there may be some good news: On Wednesday, Louisiana Recovery Authority director Paul Rainwater was able to bang out a two-year contract with a new firm that will take over the rental program starting Monday.
More than 5,000 remaining applicants could start hearing from new program agents as early as next week.
When the LRA launched the small-rental program, it promised forgivable, no-interest loans to landlords to make their one- to four-unit structures more energy-efficient and affordable. The loans of up to $72,000 per unit would become gifts if landlords keep low-income tenants in well-equipped apartments for 10 years.
But landlords could get paid only after they rebuilt all units and provided affordable rents to eligible tenants, and that has proved a major deterrent.
The LRA touted the program as a way to restore as many as 18,000 of the 81,000 south Louisiana rental units damaged by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. As of March 30, the program has paid 761 landlords who have repaired 1,188 units.
Each week more applicants drop out of the program, unable to foot the bill for repairs up front.
Landlords have collected $55.5 million from the program, while the state has paid the outgoing contractor, ICF International, $41.8 million to run it.
"One week of their salaries could finish my house," said Morgan Clevenger, the frustrated owner of a half-restored 7th Ward fourplex.
She got her hopes up in December when the state said it would start paying landlords advances on their awards, only to find out it wasn't going to happen until ICF was replaced....
