Columbus expands homeowner assistance program, raising income limits

The city of Columbus is announcing the expansion of a program to support home ownership for low to moderate income families.

The Columbus Housing Improvement Program (CHIP) 2.0 expands an existing city program for lower income households, to include help for residents whose income is between 80 and 120 percent of the Area Median Income. The program provides financial help to make essential home improvements. Those improvements can include:

• Roof repairs or replacements
• HVAC system repairs or replacements,
• ADA modifications
• Water heater replacements and
• Radon testing and mitigation

The city is providing up to $500,000 to the program and the maximum award will be up to $20,000. Funding will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis until all allocated funds have been exhausted.

To take part you must be a Columbus city resident, own your home, have home insurance, not live in a flood plain and agree to live in the home for a minimum of two years after making the improvements.

Applications are now open for the CHIP 2.0 program. You can find a link for more information here: https://www.columbus.in.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/CHIP-2024-application-pkge.pdf