Governor Beshear Announces $13.5 Million for Housing Disaster Recovery for Eastern & Western Kentucky
Funds will rebuild single-family homes for homeowners and homebuyers
FRANKFORT, Kentucky — Governor Andy Beshear announced the first round of Rural Housing Trust Fund (RHTF) Awards today that will build 115 new homes in disaster-impacted counties and repair 45 homes for disaster survivors in Eastern and Western Kentucky.
The $13.5 million was awarded to nine nonprofit housing agencies that are helping Kentuckians recover from the 2021 tornadoes that struck Western Kentucky and the 2022 flooding that impacted Eastern Kentucky. The recipients follow:
| Agency | Counties to be Served | RTHF Award | |
| Eastern Kentucky Disaster-Impacted Counties | |||
| Beattyville Housing Development Corp. | Lee | $220,000 | |
| Daniel Boone Community Action Agency | Clay | $203,693 | |
| Frontier Housing, Inc. | Breathitt, Floyd, Magoffin, Martin | $1,855,847 | |
| HOMES, Inc. | Floyd, Knott, Letcher, Pike | $2,500,000 | |
| Housing Development Alliance | Breathitt, Knott, Perry | $2,500,000 | |
| Partnership Housing, Inc. | Owsley | $1,000,460 | |
| Sandy Valley Habitat for Humanity | Floyd, Knott, Perry, Pike | $720,000 | |
| EKY TOTAL: | $9,000,000 | ||
| Western Kentucky Disaster-Impacted Counties | |||
| Community Ventures Corporation | Fulton, Graves | $2,596,322 | |
| The Housing Partnership, Inc. | Graves | $1,903,678 | |
| WKY TOTAL: | $4,500,000 | ||
The $13.5 million is just the first round of rebuilding efforts. The Kentucky General Assembly created the RHTF in March 2023 and allocated $20 million in State Aid Funding for Emergencies (SAFE) to aid disaster-impacted communities in replenishing their housing stock.
The new legislation placed administrative responsibilities within Kentucky Housing Corporation (KHC) and mandated the creation of a RHTF Advisory Committee.
In fewer than seven months, KHC has crafted program regulations and policies, convened the RHTF Advisory Committee, sought feedback from partners in Eastern and Western Kentucky, released a Notice of Funds Available (NOFA), reviewed applications, and awarded the first round of funds.
This round of funding focuses on homeowners:
- Home Repair, Recovery & Reconstruction to help existing owners impacted by disasters.
- Single-Family Homebuyer Development to bring new homes to disaster-impacted markets.
Soon, KHC will release another notice of funds available to focus on rebuilding apartments in Western Kentucky. This NOFA will include other KHC funds as sell as disaster recovery funds overseen by the Department for Local Government.
To learn more about the RHTF, click here. To learn more about KHC, click here.
Kentucky Housing Corporation, the state housing finance agency, was created by the 1972 General Assembly to provide affordable housing opportunities. As a self-supporting, public corporation, Kentucky Housing offers down payment assistance loans to assist first-time homebuyers obtain home mortgages, housing production financing, homeownership education/counseling, rental assistance, housing rehabilitation, and supportive housing programs for special needs populations.
