Virginia has over 159 approved home improvement grants, home repairs grants and home upgrade programs available to low income homeowner families and individuals (most programs are based on income). This article provides you with all the main home repair programs offered throughout the state in 2023.
There are 4 main sources of financial assistance for home improvement and repair in Virginia:
You can review the Federal and the State of Virginia home repair grants but ultimately your county and city are the ones you need to contact and where you apply for funding.
Every homeowner is eligible for home improvement and repairs grants and assistance in Virginia (find them all in this article). In reality, since the needs are so big, some groups like seniors, veterans, disabled and low-income households are given priority. Even in those cases, you need to apply as soon as possible because funds are limited.
So it’s often first arrived on a first served basis: apply early.
Each programs have their own eligibility, so you need to verify with programs in your area to see info you meet the income eligibility level.
In general, Virginia’s have repair and improvement help with:
More precisely the following work and repair are usually covered by home improvement grants programs:
It can be confusing to understand the terms. Lots of different organizations have different words for the same type of help programs: home improvement grant, home repair grants, programs, free grants, relief service, repair assistance, etc. They are all synonyms of programs designed to help low and moderate income homeowners repair and fix important element of their house.
Home repair programs comes in many form but they are usually in the 5 types:
Home Repair Grants & Home Improvement Grants: Typically grants don’t need to be repaid. The organization providing the funding covers the cost of the work and you don’t pay anything back.
Volunteers and charities home repairs: Some organizations rely on volunteers to repair your home so there’s no cost to you.
Home improvement loans: These are traditional loans where you have to repay a fixed amount monthly but they are usually with a lower than normal interest rate.
Home improvement loans paid at term: It’s a traditional loan paid back in full only when you leave or sell your home. This means you have nothing to pay monthly. The organization offering these loans usually takes a lien on your home to be certain to be paid in the future.
Forgivable home improvement loans: It’s a traditional loan but you do have to pay it back monthly. Instead after a few years the organization forgives your loan.
Note: In some rare cases you may find yourself with a mix of the types above. In all cases the important thing is you get help to fix your home and keep it secured and a place for you to live in a safe and healthy home.
HUD is the federal agency providing help and funding to States’ Housing agencies, Counties and Cities. HUD have many programs from home buyer help, renter help, homeowners funding for home repairs and improvements, among many programs.
Granting Freedom: The program is a collaboration between Virginia Housing and the Virginia Department of Veteran Services, and it offers assistance to homeowners and renters for home modifications, primarily benefiting disabled veterans. The program is a grant, up to $8,000, per residence or rental unit. Eligible modifications include wheelchair accessibility improvements, ramp installations, and other recommendations by the VA.
Eligibility: Virginia veterans and service members with service-connected disabilities can apply.
Work done:
Virginia Housing’s Accessibility Grants: The program provides financial support for renters to make their homes more accessible. This initiative offers grants of up to $8,000 through the Rental Unit Accessibility Modification (RUAM) program.
Eligibility:
Work done: Installation of grab bars and other modifications to improve in-home navigation is supported.
INDOOR PLUMBING REHABILITATION: The program provides forgivable loans to low- and moderate income owner-occupants of substandard housing that lacks complete indoor plumbing or has general rehabilitation needs with one or more major systems failing (HVAC, electrical, roofing, etc.).
More details here. And contact information.
Emergency Home and Accessibility Repair: The program provides funding to address urgent health and safety hazards and physical accessibility barriers in housing for low-income Virginians. It covers various repairs, including plumbing, structural, electrical, roofing, and the installation of wheelchair ramps.
This program is offered on a first-come, first-served basis, and interested individuals can contact their local EHARP provider.
Eligibility:
Weatherization Assistance (WAP): The program helps reduce energy use and improve resident health and safety through cost-effective energy saving measures.
Eligibility is based on income, and the program offers:
Find local providers on this map.
Weatherization Deferral Repair (WDR): The program help households make necessary repairs to their homes in order to then qualify for energy efficiency and safety upgrades through the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP).
Eligibility:
Work Covered:
Home Modification and Repair: This program promote the safety and well-being of adults in their homes; designed to increase accessibility, reduce the risk of injury, and improve older adults’ ability to stay at home; it may also include the purchase of certain assistive devices. It’s managed locally by your local Area Agencies on Aging.
The USDA provide home improvement loans and government grants for home repairs to low-income homeowners in rural areas
Who may apply for this program?
To qualify, you must:
What is an eligible area?
Applicants may check the address of their home to determine eligibility.
How may funds be used?
How much money can I get?
What are the terms of the loan or grant?
Is there a deadline to apply?
Applications for this program are accepted through your local USDA’s RD office all year round
How long does an application take?
Approval times depend on funds availability in your area.
The VA provide home loans to veterans. A cash out refinance loan can be used for home repair, improvement or modifications.
More details and contact info.
This organisation provide help to homeowners in Richmond, Hannover, Petersburg, Henrico and Chesterfield counties.
Critical home repair: Work include plumbing and electrical work, replacing rotted flooring, roof repair, replacing and repairing unsafe porches, steps and railings.
LEAD-BASED PAINT HAZARD CONTROL: Program focus mainly on homes and apartments built before 1978 where at-risk children under 6 or pregnant members reside. The program pays for all lead removal and new paint afterward. For safety, all occupants in the home must temporarily relocate while the lead hazard control measures are completed.
WHEELCHAIR RAMPS: The program offer to build and install wheelchair ramps for low-income elderly and disabled homeowners at no charge.
ENERGY CONSERVATION: Those 4 programs will help your home save on your energy bills and make more comfortable. The 4 programs are Weatherization, Utility, Water Conservation and a program for multi family buildings.
This organisation help mostly, but not exclusively, rural homeowners in Virginia and other South East States.
Indoor Plumbing Rehabilitation: The program focuses on occupied homes without complete indoor plumbing. SERCAP will inspect your homes and determine if a bathroom can be added. Existing plumbing can be refurbished or replaced, or if substantial reconstruction is necessary.
Lead Hazard Reduction: Program offers low-to-moderate income families who have a child age 6 or under or a pregnant woman either living in the home. The program provides both technical and financial assistance in identifying Lead Hazards in the home and providing lead mitigation through lead hazard reduction services.
Individual Septic: The program offers a loan, up to $15,000, for rural residents to pay for the installation of a new standard or alternative septic system. The interest rate is locked at the low-rate of 1%, and these loans are not readily available from other lending institutions.
Individual Well: The program is a loan with a 1% low interest for up to $15,000 to rural residetns of area under 50,000 of population to cover the cost of digging a new well or repairing an existing well.
Home Improvement Loan: The program offers a loan, up to $15,000, to low and moderate income residents of rural communities to complete home improvement projects such as replacing faulty HVAC units and installing handicap infrastructures. Interest rates is between 3% to 6% based on the applicant’s median household income. This type pf loans are usually unavailable at affordable terms from traditional lenders. SERCAP accepts lower credit score of 600 to increase borrower eligibility.
More details on the 5 programs.
With 40 local organizations in Virginia and its volunteers, Habitat provide help to low income, disable and elderly homeowners to fix their home and live longer in their home.
Restore offer donated building material, appliances and furniture for homes in 11 locations throughout Virginia. Profits are re-used by Habitat for their repair and new home programs.
RT offer services to homeowners in Virginia 3 main population areas: Richmond, Alexandria/DC and Arlington, Fairfax and Falls Church area. Each local organizations offer a few services such as home repairs, weatherization, accessibility modification, aging and safety modifications.
This non-profit cover the Apalachia area of Virginia. Volunteers can come repair your home if you fit their eligibility criteria.
Work done:
This organization work with local agencies in every counties in Virginia to help Virginia residents. Most local agencies have home repair and programs for homeowners.
This non-profit organization offers many services in the counties of Carroll and Grayson, and the City of Galax.
INDOOR PLUMBING REHABILITATION: The program help homeowners who do not have proper indoor plumbing sources or have failed water delivery and waste removal systems. After a review of your home you may be eligible to receive assistance with Rehabilitation or Substantial Reconstruction with income-based payments.
EMERGENCY HOME AND ACCESSIBILITY REPAIR: The program help removing health and safety hazards or accessibility barriers for income eligible area residents.
This organization provides loans to low-income homeowners in Buchanan, Dickenson, Russell and Washington counties, to repair and improve their homes or grants to elderly very-low-income homeowners to remove health and safety hazards. Eligible participants for home repair grants must be 62 years and older. Their program use the USDA loan program for rural homeowners.
Some Virginia counties have approved home repair and government grant programs and most major cities also have similar help for homeowners. You can find most of them below.
If you don’t see your county or city below you should contact its housing or community development departments directly and ask them if the city have a home repair program.
Home Repair for the Elderly: The program provides minor home repairs and accessibility modifications to eligible low to moderate income elderly homeowners and individuals with disabilities.
Typical work:
Project Mend-A-House
This organization offers assistance to individuals in Prince William County. Eligibility is based on low-income ratios and prioritizes health and safety.
Eligibility:
Work done:
Habitat for Humanity
Critical Home Repair: Include the repair or replacement of major home systems including roofing, siding, windows, heating and air conditioning, plumbing or electrical systems, or providing accessibility accommodations such as wheelchair ramps.
Home Preservation: Program focuses on revitalizing neighborhoods by repairing trim, gutters, siding, and more.
Weatherization: Program’s goal is to reduce energy costs for low-income homeowners. By doing energy audits to identify specific problems. Then weatherize your home, by sealing windows and doors, insulation, and chaging or updating your heating and cooling systems.
Owner Occupied Home Rehabilitation: Program provides assistance in order to remove an existing or imminent health and/or safety hazard and to make necessary modifications to allow a physically disabled resident to remain in the dwelling. Assistance is provided with an unsecured grant or secured grant up to $25,000.00.
Find list of work done and eligibility here
Mobile Home Rehabilitation: Program provides help for mobile home rehabilitation/repairs needed to remove an existing or imminent health and/or safety hazard; correct code violations; or make physical improvements, adaptations, or modifications for accessibility. Assistance is a grant. Assistance may be repaid if the recipient vacates their mobile home within two years from the completion dates.
Find list of work done and eligibility here
Home Accessibility and Repair (HARP): Program grants up to $10,000 to assist homeowner to improve their homes by remedying health hazards, building code violations, improving accessibility, lowering energy burden, and other conditions. Application process can take 2-3 months since this program must meet certain federal requirements.
Eligibilty:
Find details, eligibility and contact
Granting Freedom: Program provides grants up to $8,000 for homeowner-occupied and rental unit modifications to veterans and service members. There must be an identifiable relationship, or nexus, between the requested modification and the individual’s disability.
Granting Freedom is available to:
Community Health Partner
Weatherization: Provide help to low-income individuals and families to reduce energy costs by improving the energy efficiency and health of their homes by stoping leaks, adding insulatio and repairing or changing heating and cooling systems.
Loudoun Habitat for Humanity
Home Repair: Program helps families maintain and stay safe in their homes by addressing necessary health, safety, and accessibility repairs.
Work done:
Exterior Repairs: Exterior work that includes painting, patching, minor repair, brush removal, and replacement of exterior building materials for maintaining good or sound condition.
Interior Repairs: Interior work performed to address health and safety issues or code violations.
Accessibility Modifications: Exterior or Interior work to prevent trips or falls, increase accessibility within the home, and increase ability to complete activities of daily living.
Critical Home Repairs: The county partner with Habitat for Humanity, project:HOMES and Rebuilding Together Richmond to provide homeowners with help repair their homes in need of major repairs to structure, roof, plumbing, electrical or other major systems.
Critical Home Repairs: Program provides funding for critical repairs to homes meeting income eligibility guidelines. The repairs or replacement of exterior or interior items that pose an imminent threat to the health or safety of persons living in the home. The cost of repairs can go up to $10,000. This program is administered for the County by project:HOMES.
Richmond Metropolitan Habitat for Humanity
The local Habitat manages a program to address critical, active roof leaks.
Moderate Rehabilitation Housing Rehabilitation: The program help long-term livability of homes by making major corrections addressing health and safety issues as well as complete system upgrades, energy efficiency, and adaptability improvements. Improvements can go up to $45,000. All improvements bring the homes up to HUD Standards.
Eligibility: Homeowners must be elderly (62 or over) or disabled and must be of low or moderate income.
You can get assistance or learn more about these programs; contact project:HOMES directly at (804) 233-2827.
Find more details on those programs on this Pdf.
No city or county specific program but Habitat offer home repair services. Plus you can also refer yourself to the Federal, State’s, Community Organizations and other State wide programs.
Weatherization: This is a typical weatherization program helping reducing your energy cost by finding leaks, adding insulation and repairing or upgrading your home heating and cooling systems.
Habitat for Humanity
Home Repair: Habitat help families who cannot afford to make repairs to their homes that threaten their health and safety. There are seniors and older adults who don’t have the money to install ramps, handrails, and make modifications that would allow them to safely remain in their homes and maintain their independence.
Renovate Norfolk: Program provides a grant to make interior and exterior improvements to provide safe and sanitary housing and/or improve accessibility for seniors or persons with mobility impairments. Approved work is determined by a pre-inspection reports and prioritizing health, safety, and building code deficiencies.
Owner-Occupied Rehabilitation: The program provides eligible participants in target neighborhoods of Ingleside and Oakdale Farms/Monticello Village with financial assistance to provide home improvements that create an aesthetic boost to target neighborhoods and improve property values.
Stop Inc.
Habitat for Humanity of South Hampton Roads
The city work and provide resource to Habitat for Humanity and Project Homes to repair houses in the city of Richmond.
Newport News does not have a county specific program. But you can refer yourself to the State’s, Community organisations and other state wide programs above.
Stafford county does not have county specific home repair programs. But you can refer yourself to the State’s, Community organisations and other state wide programs above.
Home Rehabilitation Energy Efficiency: This is a no interest loan program offering eligible low and moderate income homeowners an energy assessments. The repayment of the loan is deferred for 99 years or until the property is sold or the owner(s) move, whichever comes first. The program find energy issues and solutions to do energy efficiency improvements:
Learn more by contacting: Arthur Thomas at 703.746.3091 at the city.
Home Rehabilitation: The program is a loan to help repairs or improvements or replacements required for the health or safety of the owners or which are needed to preserve and extend the life of the property.
The max amount for a single family residence is $135 000, at 0% interes, no monthly payments, due in 99 years or when the property is sold or transferred. The loan is secured with a deed on your home as a Deed.
Work can cover:
Weatherizing and Utility Assistance: There are a few resources for weatherization assistance available to help low and moderate-income City residents weatherize their homes and reduce their monthly energy bills.
Rebuilding Together Alexandria: The organisation provides free home repairs and safety modifications to homeowners in need (primarily elderly and disabled residents).
Community Housing Partners Corporation: This organisation do diagnostic tests to evaluate areas of heat loss and energy efficiency improvements, such as repairing or installing attic and wall insulation and weather striping doors. You can contact CHPC: 540.636.8079.
Heating, Cooling & Water Assistance: These programs help low and moderate income resident with their energy and water bills, plus heating fuel during certain months.
Find more details and contact info on this page.
Spotsylvania county does not have a county specific home repair program. But you can refer yourself to the State’s, Community organisations and other state wide programs above.
Rebuilding Together Fredericksburg
RT closed its doors in 2022 and the non profit 516Project is now doing the same work RT was doing.
More details about their services.
Extreme Home Repair Blitz: This program helps elderly, veterans, disabled, or low-income homeowners in the Wythe neighborhood and bordering streets in Newport News. This is managed by Habitat for Humanity and the application can be done there.
Eligible work:
Home Deferred Rehabilitation: The program offered by Hampton Redevelopment and Housing Authority (HRHA) provides forgivable loans to homeowners for property maintenance. Loan amounts range from $1,000 to a maximum of $25,000 and in some areas up to $50,000.
Eligibility criteria include:
Work covered by the program may include bringing homes up to code standards and addressing maintenance issues.
WEATHERIZATION AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM (WEEP): Propram helps reducing heating/cooling costs and improving the safety of homes through energy efficiency. Loan amounts range from a minimum of $1,000 to a maximum of $25,000. The measures performed include, but are not limited to:
ACCESSIBILITY GRANT: Program help with accessible modifications to their primary residence, covering the cost of labor and materials up to $7,000.
Find 3 programs above details and eligibility here.
Safe at Home AHIP
This non-profit serving Albemarle and Charlotteville has 3 main programs.
Emergency repairs: This program does critical repairs requiring immediate work to ensure your safety and well-being.
Work examples include:
Rehabs: The program takes care of more comprehensive projects addressing many repair needs at once, a home’s outdated or failing plumbing, electrical, and septic systems, and/or foundation and structural issues.
Energy-efficiency upgrades: Program helps homeowners lower operating costs related to heating and cooling.
Work include:
Charlottesville does not have city a specific home repair program. But you can refer yourself to the county, State’s, Community organisations and other state wide programs above.
Critical Repairs: The program is managed by Habitat for Humanit and cover homeowners in Hanover & King William counties.
Work can cover:
The city doesn’t have its own programs but a few local organizations can do home repair, major rehabilitation, and home modification for seniors and handicapped.
Blue Ridge Senior Living Center: Does home modification and adaptation for seniors homes.
Renovation Alliance: Does home repairs such as:
Tap into Hope: Can do small to medium scope repairs and weatherization.
Habitat for Humanity Roanoke: Can do home repair and improvement, accessibility and weatherization.