Smart Home America

Smart Home America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides disaster resilience education and technical assistance to empower communities to build stronger. Their mission is to create stronger communities through collaboration, education, and the promotion of resilient and sustainable policies, products, and building methods.

Learn more about the how to protect your current or future home from natural disasters. Read more about the four pillars to build a smart home: 1) building/re-roofing using FORTIFIED standards, 2) protection from floods, 3) adequate insurance, and 4) using energy-efficient construction.

 

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

Resilient Building Codes Toolkit
https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/6701/resilient-building-codes-toolkit/
The intent of the Resilient Building Codes Toolkit is to bring transparency and clarity to building codes, especially with respect to resilience. The main objective of this work is to create a platform that allows all relevant stakeholders to navigate an otherwise challenging building code environment and to offer resources for Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) and CDBG Mitigation (MIT) grantees to incorporate resilient building codes into their disaster recovery and mitigation efforts. Ultimately, the goal is to
enhance resilience in the built environment, specifically with respect to housing and other critical building assets. To learn more about the Toolkit and to view the Resilient Building Codes Webinar Series, visit the Resilient Building Codes page.

The Green and Resilient Retrofit Program

https://www.hud.gov/grrp

The Green and Resilient Retrofit Program provides funding for direct loans and grants to fund projects that improve energy or water efficiency, enhance indoor air quality or sustainability, implement the use of zero-emission electricity generation, low-emission building materials or processes, energy storage, or building electrification strategies, or address climate resilience, of eligible HUD-assisted multifamily properties. GRRP also provides funding to support benchmarking at assisted properties. For the latest funding updates, scroll and access each slide above.

Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO Housing)
https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/comm_planning/pro_housing
Communities nationwide are suffering from a lack of affordable housing, and housing production is not meeting the increasing demand for accessible and available units in many urban and rural areas, particularly areas of high opportunity. supports communities who are actively taking steps to remove barriers to affordable housing,
such as:

  • Barriers caused by outdated zoning, land use policies, or regulations;
  • Inefficient procedures;
  • Gaps in available resources for development; Deteriorating or inadequate infrastructure;
  • Lack of neighborhood amenities; or
  • Challenges to preserving existing housing stock such as increasing threats from natural
    hazards, redevelopment pressures, or expiration of affordability requirements.

Preservation and Reinvestment Initiative for Community Enhancement (PRICE)
https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/comm_planning/price
HUD has issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) which appropriates $235 million in competitive grant funding for the preservation and revitalization of manufactured housing and eligible manufactured housing communities. Congress has directed HUD to undertake a competition using the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) statutory and regulatory framework for this first-of-its-kind initiative. PRICE supports communities in their efforts to maintain, protect, and stabilize manufactured housing and manufactured housing communities
(MHCs). Manufactured housing is a critical piece of the nation’s affordable housing stock that provides a home to over 22 million Americans. Manufactured housing and manufactured housing communities (MHCs) face significant challenges to affordability, resilience, infrastructure, and maintenance that are exacerbated by state titling and local zoning laws, financial pressures from landowners or investors, and extreme weather, natural hazards, and disaster events.

Annual Innovative Housing Showcase (see upcoming notice for 2025)
https://www.hud.gov/press/press_releases_media_advisories/HUD_No_24_125

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced new details regarding
the 2024 Innovative Housing Showcase, including exhibitors who will be traveling to the
nation’s capital to demonstrate their innovations and educational programming led by HUD and
our co-presenters, the International Code Council (ICC), Manufactured Housing Institute
(MHI), National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC), and Structural Building Components
Association (SBCA). The Showcase is a public event on the National Mall to raise awareness of
innovative and affordable housing designs and technologies that have the potential to increase
housing supply, lower the cost of construction, increase energy efficiency and resilience, and
reduce housing expenses for owners and renters. Policymakers, homebuilders and other members
of the housing industry, innovators and entrepreneurs, media, and the general public are all
invited to attend.

Arkansas Information, National Low Income Housing Coalition

Caring.com Emergency Housing Guide: Oriented toward the problem of housing for seniors, this easily accessible guide provides pragmatic solutions, empowering seniors and their families to secure emergency housing, obtain financial assistance, and explore rapid rehousing options.

CFPB Rental Assistance Program Finder

HoUSed: A national strategy created by NLIHC to ensure that people with the lowest incomes and the most marginalized people have a stable, affordable home. Congress must use every opportunity to advance bold housing solutions that move our nation towards universal, stable, and affordable homes for everyone! A full description of HoUSed accompanied by resources may be found at http://nlihc.org/housed.