Housing Assistance for Families Affected by Texas' Wildfires

 It has been an incredible sight in and around Austin the past few days. Living and working in central Austin the past week has felt more like a war zone. Any direction you turn you would see smoke along the horizon. Now, as the fires around Austin begin to extinguish it's going to be time for families to begin rebuilding their lives. The volunteer response has been incredible to hear about and now as these families begin to think about rebuilding their lives it's important to realize that assistance will continue to be needed, whether volunteer or professional.
Being a REALTOR®, I am proud to say our professional organizations are stepping in and doing what they can to assist the families in need of new homes, whether temporary or long term.

Austin Board of REALTORS® has provided a list of help links and information for families affected by the Texas Wildfires.

Here is the full link to this resource provided by AustinHomeSearch.com

Some details I found important to note:

What can consumers do now if they were affected by the fires?

• Contact your Loan Officer: If you are under contract on a home, you need to check with your loan officer to determine whether or not additional final inspections are required. If so, that may cost up to $200 for the final inspection and take a few extra days to finalize the loan.

 

• Check with your insurance provider: Additionally, I would recommend that homeowners contact their insurance providers to see if the insurance company is ready to insure the home.

 

• Contact HomeAway for Vacation Rentals Offered by Owners: Many vacation rental owners have offered their properties specifically to local residents who have been displaced by the fires in Central Texas for free or at discounted rates.

 

• Coordinating with FEMA: ABoR has talked with FEMA about publishing rental homes listed on the popular consumer-oriented site AustinHomeSearch.com. This effort is designed to connect displaced evacuees with available interim housing. More information will be published as the details are available. Check back regularly for more information.

I want to thank Austin Board of REALTORS® and Austin Home Search for publishing this information.

If you know of anyone affected by the wildfires in and around Austin please share this with them so they may know these resources are available to them.

~Molly