Washtenaw County Renters May Be Eligible for Federal Disaster Relief

By The Ann Arbor Independent Editorial Team Last updated Aug 13, 2021

Renters in Washtenaw and Wayne counties whose homes and personal property were damaged by the June 25-26 storms and flooding can apply for federal disaster assistance.

FEMA’s Individual Assistance program is available to all eligible renters, including students, as well as homeowners. Federal grants may help pay for temporary housing if a primary home is not able to be lived in because of the disaster.

Renters may also qualify for a grant under FEMA’s Other Needs Assistance program for essential personal property and other serious disaster-related expenses. These may include:

Storm-related medical and dental expenses;
Increased cost of child-care expenses;
Moving and storage fees;
Replacement or repair of necessary personal property lost or damaged in the disaster, such as appliances and furniture, textbooks and computers used by students, and work equipment or tools used by independent contractors;
Repair or replacement of storm-damaged vehicles;
Storm-related funeral and burial expenses.
And, other serious disaster-related needs not covered by insurance or other sources.

Some types of grants from FEMA’s Other Needs Assistance program may be provided only if you are not referred or do not qualify for a disaster loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). Renters may qualify for long-term, low-interest loans of up to $40,000 from the SBA. These loans may be used to cover the cost of repairing or replacing essential disaster-damaged personal property. For more information, visit SBA.gov/disaster, call 800-659-2955 (TTY 800-877-8339) or email DisasterCustomerService@sba.gov. To apply for an SBA loan, visit disasterloanassistance.sba.gov/ela.

There are three ways to start the application process for FEMA disaster assistance:

Call the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362 (TTY) 800-462-7585 from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week until further notice. Multilingual operators are available.

Visit DisasterAssistance.gov,
Use the FEMA mobile app, or
Call the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362 (TTY) 800-462-7585 from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week until further notice. Multilingual operators are available.

The registration deadline is Sept. 13, 2021. For the latest information on the southeast Michigan disaster, visit fema.gov/disaster/4607.