New Grants to Help Current Home/Condo Owners
Governor Ron DeSantis has signed two pieces of legislation to strengthen and expand the My Safe Home grant program. The governor approved $200 million (SB 7028) to continue a “home hardening grant program” aimed to help low-and moderate-income homeowners lower their property insurance costs. It is estimated that about 20,000 Florida homeowners will benefit from the grants.
The other bill (HB 1029) will add an additional $30 million to include condo owners. (Before this legislation the program was only offered to owners of single-family homes.)
Specifically, the program offers grants for homeowners up to $10,000 for inspections and upgrades to their homes to qualify for property-insurance discounts for residences valued up to $700,000.
The funding bill stipulates that low-income homeowners over age 60 will be the first in line to be offered the grants. Second in line will be all other low-income individuals and families. Applications from moderate-income homeowners ages 60 and older would be third in line for consideration.
Last November. The Florida State Legislature passed legislation earmarking $176 million for the program to fund approximately 17,600 applications.
Initially, the program began in 2006 after the severe hurricanes of 2004 and 2005 that resulted in $33 billion in insured property damage. After an initial infusion of $250 million, the next allocation into the program didn’t come until 2022, when lawmakers put forward $215 million during a special legislative session to address the state’s on-going property-insurance problems.
The Insurance Information Institute said in November that the average cost of insuring a home in Florida is about $6,000 a year. The My Safe Florida Home program was credited at the time with average premium discounts of $981.31 among homeowners who applied for the discounts and were accepted.
To lower insurance rates, grants will be offered to install secondary water resistance for the roof, upgrade roof covering, and improve the strength of roof deck attachments. Also, included will be exterior door upgrades, garage door upgrades, and window upgrades.
Additionally, those included in the program will not have to pay sales tax on any purchases for the upgrades.
This program is a super win for those who qualify. Beyond improving and strengthening your home through the grants, the program should also result in lower home insurance costs, due to those improvements.