U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall (D-WV) announced today that southern West Virginia Housing Authorities have been awarded $162,000 in Housing Preservation funds by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s Rural Development Program to help repair and rehabilitate low-income and rural housing in communities across southern West Virginia.

“I am always happy to help a family find or fix the place they call home,” said Rahall. “These grants will help some of southern West Virginia's hardest working families make much-needed repairs and upgrades to keep their homes safe.”

The $162,000 USDA funding includes:

•    $70,000 for the Safe Housing & Economic Development, Inc., (SHED) for the repair and improvement of low-income housing in McDowell, Mercer, and Wyoming counties.

•    A $20,000 grant has been awarded to the Housing Authority of Mingo County for the repair and rehabilitation of owner-occupied housing in Mingo County.

•    A $72,000 grant has been awarded to the Southern Appalachian Labor School (SALS) for the repair and rehabilitation of low-income housing in rural coal-camp communities of Fayette County.  This is the third straight year SALS has been awarded USDA Housing Preservation funding. 

“The rising cost of living makes affording home ownership and repair increasingly difficult for low-income Americans living in rural areas,” said Rahall.  “I am pleased these funds will help many rural West Virginians have better, safer places to live.”

The USDA's Housing Preservation Grant program provides funding to public agencies and nonprofit organizations for use in targeted housing repair or rehabilitation programs.