A man called me in the spring, six weeks into waiting on an application he was certain would save his house. He had filled in forms. He had scanned documents. He had been checking his email every morning.
The program had stopped taking applications years earlier. He had found a page that never got updated, and he had spent six weeks of a very short clock on it.
I want that answer at the top of the page, because the cost of the wrong answer here is measured in weeks, and weeks are the one thing nobody in foreclosure has spare.
I'm Kady. I help Florida homeowners through foreclosure, hardship, inherited property, illness, divorce, and all the other things that show up uninvited. I am not a lender and I am not a counselor. I am the person people call when they are not sure who to call.
This particular article earns me absolutely nothing. It exists because I keep meeting people who lost a month to a search engine, and I would rather hand you the current list than watch that happen again.
The short version
Florida's Homeowner Assistance Fund closed to new applications in 2022. Florida's older Hardest Hit Fund is closed too. Nationally the program was due to end in September 2026 or whenever the money ran out, whichever came first, and Florida's ran out long before the deadline. No statewide replacement has opened. What is still real: loss mitigation through your own servicer, free HUD approved counseling, free legal aid, and local city or county programs where they exist. In Jacksonville that includes up to $12,000 through the city's Foreclosure Intervention Program. Start there, start this week, and never pay anybody upfront.
What Happened to the Money
The Homeowner Assistance Fund came out of the American Rescue Plan Act in 2021. Roughly ten billion dollars nationally, sent to the states, meant to help homeowners who fell behind because of the pandemic.
Florida's program opened in 2022 and closed to new applications the same year. The money moved fast because the need was enormous, and once it was committed there was nothing left to give out.
The older Florida Hardest Hit Fund, which came out of the 2008 crisis, is closed as well. Florida Housing's own page says so plainly. Both of the programs people are most likely to find when they search are gone.
Nationally the picture is similar. As of this year most states have exhausted their HAF funding and stopped accepting applications. A small handful still had programs open, but Florida has not been one of them for a long time.
And the federal program itself was scheduled to end in September 2026, or whenever the funds were used up, whichever came first. So even the outside deadline has now arrived.
Why You Keep Finding Pages That Say Otherwise
Because the internet does not clean up after itself.
Articles from 2022 are still sitting at the top of search results, written when the program genuinely was open, and nobody went back to update them. Some government pages still describe eligibility rules for a program that stopped taking applications. Plenty of well meaning people in Facebook groups still recommend it.
None of that is malicious. It is just stale, and stale costs you time.
The myth
I found an official looking page describing the eligibility rules, so the program must still be running.
The truth
Eligibility pages outlive programs all the time. What matters is whether applications are being accepted today, and in Florida they are not.
The myth
Somebody contacted me and said they can get my HAF application approved for a fee.
The truth
That is a scam, with no exceptions. Nobody can get you money from a program that is not accepting applications, and government assistance was never something you paid a middleman to access.
The myth
If the big program is gone, then there is no help left and I may as well stop looking.
The truth
What remains is smaller, more local and far less advertised, which is exactly why it still has money in it. It is also free to ask about.
That last one is the one I actually worry about. People hear closed, decide the whole subject is a dead end, and stop making calls. The famous program is gone. The useful ones were never famous.
What Is Actually Open
A HUD approved housing counselor
Foreclosure counseling is free by design, and the counselor works for you rather than your lender. They know which programs your specific loan type offers and will build the application so it does not come back rejected for a missing page. Call 800-569-4287 or the HOPE Hotline at 888-995-HOPE.
Loss mitigation through your own servicer
The most overlooked option on this list, because it is the company people are avoiding. They are required to review you for available options before they can foreclose. Say the words: I am experiencing a hardship and I would like to apply for loss mitigation. Then get a name, a date and a reference number.
City and county programs
In Jacksonville, the city's Foreclosure Intervention Program offers eligible Duval homeowners up to $12,000 to bring a mortgage current or complete a modification. It is a deferred payment loan rather than a grant, and it is first come and first served. Other Florida counties run their own versions. Call your county housing office and ask.
Legal aid
Most Florida circuits have a legal aid organisation handling foreclosure defense for households that qualify by income. If you have been served with a lawsuit, this is the call to make today rather than on day nineteen.
Your county property appraiser and tax collector
Two different offices, and neither one is a program you will find by searching for mortgage help. Exemptions reduce the bill, and homeowners 65 and older can apply to defer the part of it that exceeds 3 percent of household income. Worth a call even if your mortgage is current.
I keep a fuller version of this list in my guide to where to actually get help paying your mortgage in Florida right now, and the Jacksonville specific detail sits in my Duval County guide.
If somebody is offering you this money
Hang up, or throw the letter away. There is no version of this that is legitimate in 2026.
Be just as careful with anyone charging an upfront fee to secure any kind of mortgage assistance, anyone guaranteeing approval, and anyone who wants you to sign over your deed and rent the house back. Foreclosure filings are public record in Florida, so your name goes on a list the moment a case is opened, and there are people who watch those lists.
Three questions work on everybody, including me. What is your Florida license or registration number. What exactly do you get paid, by whom, and when. And what happens if this does not work.
What to Do With the Time You Just Saved
If you came to this page mid search, you have just saved yourself the six weeks that man lost. Spend them on something that still exists.
Make the counselor call this week. Make the servicer call the same week. If you are in Jacksonville, ask the city about intervention funds and ask early in the year rather than late, because first come and first served is not a figure of speech.
And find out what your house is actually worth. Payoff quote, honest as is value, every lien listed, then subtract. Florida values moved a long way after 2020, and a lot of the homeowners I meet have real equity they have never had valued. That single number decides whether you are solving a keep the house problem or a leave with something problem, and they need completely different plans.
"The worst thing that happens here is not getting turned down. It is spending six weeks waiting on an answer from a program that stopped existing, while the clock on the real case keeps running."
If you are not sure what is still open for your situation, tell me what is going on and I will point you at the things that actually exist. Most of them have nothing to do with me and earn me nothing, which is rather the point. Call or text 904-400-2131 or email kady@helpinghandhomesfl.com. No pressure, no judgment.
Stop searching for a closed program. Let's find what's open.
Tell me where you are and I will help you work out which of these calls is worth your time, point you to the free help when that is the right answer, and if selling turns out to be your best move, get you a fair, no obligation cash offer with no pressure and no timeline from your side.
Just Talk to Kady Get My Cash OfferQuestions People Ask Me
Is the Florida Homeowner Assistance Fund still open in 2026?
No. Florida's Homeowner Assistance Fund closed to new applications in 2022 and there is no statewide replacement. The federal program behind it was scheduled to end in September 2026 or when the money ran out, whichever came first, and Florida's allocation was exhausted long before that date.
How much did Florida receive from the Homeowner Assistance Fund?
Florida was allocated approximately $676.1 million under the American Rescue Plan Act, part of roughly ten billion dollars distributed nationally. The money went toward past due mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance and association fees, and it was committed quickly.
Is the Florida Hardest Hit Fund still available?
No. All programs under the Florida Hardest Hit Fund have closed and no new applications are being accepted. It came out of the 2008 crisis and is a separate program from the pandemic era Homeowner Assistance Fund, but both are now shut.
Why do I keep finding websites saying I can still apply?
Because pages written in 2022 are still sitting in search results and nobody went back to update them. Eligibility descriptions frequently outlive the programs they describe. What matters is whether applications are being accepted today, not whether the rules are still published somewhere.
Someone says they can get me HAF money for a fee. Is that real?
No, that is a scam. Nobody can obtain money from a program that is not accepting applications, and government assistance was never something you paid a middleman to reach. Be equally wary of anyone charging upfront fees for mortgage assistance, guaranteeing approval, or proposing that you sign over your deed and rent the home back.
Has anything replaced it in Florida?
Not at the state level. What remains is smaller and more local: free HUD approved housing counseling, free legal aid for those who qualify, loss mitigation through your own mortgage servicer, and city or county assistance programs where they exist. In Jacksonville that includes up to $12,000 through the city's Foreclosure Intervention Program.
What should I do instead?
Call a HUD approved counselor at 800-569-4287 or the HOPE Hotline at 888-995-HOPE, then call your servicer and say that you are experiencing a hardship and would like to apply for loss mitigation. If you have been served with a foreclosure lawsuit, contact legal aid immediately, because you have twenty days to file a written response.
Are other states' HAF programs still open?
A small number were still accepting applications as of this year, but most states have exhausted their funding. It varies by state and changes constantly, so check your own state's official program page rather than relying on an article. For Florida homeowners the answer has been no for several years.
Where to learn more
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Homeowner Assistance Fund information and current status by state
- U.S. Department of the Treasury, Homeowner Assistance Fund state and territory allocations
- Florida Housing Finance Corporation, Florida Hardest Hit Fund closure notice
- HUD approved housing counselors, 800-569-4287, and the HOPE Hotline, 888-995-HOPE
- City of Jacksonville Foreclosure Intervention Program, for Duval County homeowners
- Your local legal aid organisation, for free foreclosure representation if you qualify by income
- Your county property appraiser and tax collector, if property taxes are part of the problem
A gentle note: I am a Florida Realtor and home buyer, not an attorney, an accountant, or a housing counselor, and this is general information rather than advice for your situation. Program status changes, local funding cycles open and close, and the only reliable confirmation is a phone call to the office running the program. Figures and status described here reflect publicly available information as of September 2026. Please verify anything you plan to rely on, and use the free counseling and legal aid before paying anybody for help.
Written by Kady Andreoli, founder of Helping Hand Home Solutions FL. Florida Realtor and investor helping homeowners explore every available option. Guidance without judgment, and people before profit. 904-400-2131 · kady@helpinghandhomesfl.com
Not sure what's still open? Ask Kady.
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