Knox County Home Rehabilitation Program

How it works

The Knox County Home Rehabilitation (KCHR) Program provides essential repairs to eligible homeowners to prevent home deterioration, provide accessibility modifications, and maintain housing quality and safety. It has two forms of assistance:

• Emergency Home Repair: repairs needed to remove or reduce threats to the health, safety, or well-being of a dwelling’s occupants. Qualifying emergency repairs may be offered without repayment.
• Minor Home Repair Loan: covers all other eligible repairs that fall under the moderate and low priority categories. These repairs are offered with a 0% interest loan.

The program says repairs are evaluated after a home inspection, and the KCHR team will tell the homeowner which repairs qualify for emergency assistance or the loan.

What the money covers

The official page describes assistance as covering essential repairs to prevent deterioration, provide accessibility modifications, and maintain housing quality and safety. It also says that the severity of the repair needs determines how the request is prioritized. Life-threatening repairs are handled before severe, moderate, and low-priority repairs.

Amounts and repayment

The page does not give a single program-wide dollar cap. However, it states:

• Homeowners who do not own the land their home sits on may be eligible for Emergency Home Repairs up to $10,000.
• Manufactured homes not on a permanent foundation may also be limited to $10,000.
• If a homeowner is eligible for $10,000 or more in repairs, a forgivable lien will be placed on the property.
• If the homeowner does not want a forgivable lien, assistance is limited to under $10,000 of Emergency Home Repair assistance.
• Minor Home Repair Loans are 0% interest and can be sized based on property value and debt-to-income rules. The page says borrowers can receive up to 95% of the estimated value of the real property, minus existing liens or loan amounts, so long as the debt-to-income ratio does not exceed 43% of gross annual income.

The page also provides maximum loan terms by amount borrowed:

• Under $5,000: 48 months
• $5,000–$9,999: 72 months
• $10,000–$14,999: 120 months
• $15,000–$25,000: 180 months

How to apply

Applicants create an account on Neighborly and submit the application with supporting documents. The page recommends including clear photographs and details about the repair needs. KCHR reviews the application, scores it for priority, and then schedules a home inspection if appropriate.

Timing and deadlines

The program is funded on an availability basis, so services are not guaranteed even if an application is submitted or a home inspection is completed. The program prioritizes the most severe repairs first: life-threatening, then severe, then moderate, then low repair needs. Homeowners may wait a significant time for assistance.