Lancaster Offers $15K Home Repair Help

The program is funded through a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. This federal funding is allocated annually to communities like Lancaster to support housing, neighborhood improvements, and services for low- and moderate-income residents. Assistance is structured as a five-year forgivable loan. Homeowners are not required to repay the funds as long as they do not sell or transfer the property within five years after the repairs are completed. Payments are made directly from the city to the contractors performing the work. To qualify, household income must be at or below 80% of the area's median income. Based on the Fiscal Year 2025 guidelines, this threshold was $61,050 for an individual and up to $87,200 for a four-person household. Applicants must be current on their mortgage, property taxes, and city utilities to be eligible. Eligible projects focus on health, safety, and code violations. This includes major work like roof and gutter replacement, exterior siding, doors, windows, HVAC systems, and accessibility modifications. The program does not cover cosmetic upgrades or repairs to detached structures like garages. This initiative is separate from other recent housing efforts in the city. In 2022, Lancaster's Healthy Homes Production Grant Program received $1 million to address health and safety hazards in 25 homes. Additionally, in January 2024, the city was awarded a $250,000 grant to rehabilitate five other owner-occupied houses. The program addresses a housing market where the median sale price reached $257,000 in January 2026, an increase of 17.6% from the previous year. The average home value in Lancaster is approximately $264,000. Applications for the rehabilitation assistance are processed on a first-come, first-served basis.