Only owner-occupied single-family homes may receive funding for rehabilitation upon certification of the household and property meeting the Program eligibility requirements.

Abington Township will process new applicants added to the waiting list/applicant pool on a first-come, first served basis, to qualified applicants. There is no cost to apply.

You can join the waiting list by completing our pre-application here. Please note that this will take you to a website outside of the Township domain.

Applying to this program DOES NOT affect your credit score.

• Collectively, all household occupants are within the income limits as set by HUD;
• Applicant property must be the program participant’s primary residence;
• The house must need substantial repair or replacement of at least one eligible item in ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES (except for the OATFP);
• Property taxes, and if applicable, mortgage and any municipal utilities must be paid current.;
• If any living quarters (bedrooms, kitchen or bathroom facilities) exist in the basement or attic and/or if there is any secondary kitchen in any unit, the homeowner will be required to provide evidence (closed out permit, certificate of occupancy, etc.) that it was permitted by the Township of Abington, prior to being able to proceed with program assistance. If there are any repairs or renovations currently being undertaken on your home by others or yourself or done within the last few years that require or required municipal permits, the work must be completed, and the permits closed out prior to applying to the Program. Contact the Abington Code Enforcement office if you have questions regarding construction permit requirements;
• The current homeowner must be owner on record for not less than two (2) years at time of application and occupy the house as their primary residence.;
• The homeowner must not have any outstanding or unresolved code violations with the Township that include violations or citations for unpermitted work, including plumbing, HVAC, electrical, additions, or alterations;
• Homes located within a flood zone are not eligible for assistance with this Program;
• Homeowners who previously received assistance from the Program or any other home repair/purchase assistance programs through the Township of Abington are not eligible to receive assistance with this Program.

Household income is defined as the combined annual gross income of all family members 18 years of age and older. Gross income is defined as current combined incomes before deduction including wages, Social Security, disability insurance, unemployment insurance, pensions, dividend/interest income, alimony, etc. The full list of possible income is in the application checklist. Each home's total household income must fall below federal HUD regional metropolitan area income limits based on family size as follows:

Effective June 1, 2025

Funds may be used only for work and repairs required to make the unit standard and abate violations of the Township’s Code of Standards, Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code, the Department of Housing and Urban Development Residential Rehabilitation Inspection Guide, and/or any other applicable housing codes; conserve energy and remove health and/or safety hazards; and any other work or repairs, including finishing and painting, which are directly related to the above listed objectives. The Program must ensure the presence of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors or install them as required by applicable codes in all houses assisted with program funds.

In order to qualify for participation in the program, at least one of the following major systems must be in need of replacement or substantial repair:

• Roof
• Plumbing (including sanitary plumbing)
• Electrical
• Load bearing structural systems
• Heating
• Window, Doors, Insulations
• Lead Paint Remediation
• Radon Remediation

A Program Inspector will visit the home to perform the property inspection and, if appropriate, issue a Certification of Substandard Conditions.

Work not eligible for program funding includes but is not limited to luxury improvements (including improvements which are strictly cosmetic), carpets, additions, conversions (basement, garage, porch, attic, etc.), repairs to structures separate from the living units (detached garage, shed, barn, accessory unit, etc.), furnishings, pools, landscaping, driveways, solar panels, and generators. Rehabilitation work performed by property owners shall not be funded under this program. The costs of removing any illegally converted living space (e.g., illegal bedrooms in the basement) are not eligible for assistance. Please note that the Program does not reimburse for previously completed work or for work that is currently underway.

For the traditional OORP, an initial $25,000 will be realized in the form of a grant made that will be paid directly to a contractor selected through the program processes.

Any funds used to pay a contractor for program work that exceeds the initial $25,000 grant will be realized in the form of a zero percent (0%) ten (10) year forgivable loan. There are no monthly payments. Fifty percent (50%) of the loan is forgiven 5 years after work is completed and one hundred percent (100%) of the loan is forgiven 10 years after work is completed, if the property owner complies with the program guidelines.

Program controls are secured by a Program Mortgage and Mortgage Note filed with the Montgomery County Recorder of Deeds for the terms of the full lien period as specified under the FUNDING TERMS section.

If the owner decides to sell the property, transfer title, or if the owner should die before the end of the ten-year loan period, the owner, heirs, executors or legal representatives must repay loan at title transfer according to the Township’s Period of Affordability policies. Please refer to the Funding Terms section for more information. When recapture of the loan amount is required due to aforementioned conditions, 100% of the determined repayment amount is due and payable in its entirety at zero-percent interest. Returned funds will be used according to applicable established Township, state, and federal policies and regulations.

1. If the loan transfers due to inheritance of immediate family member Class A beneficiary who will take occupancy upon death of program mortgagee(s) and assume the balance of the lien, or;
2. If a homeowner is over the age of 65 at the time a lien is executed, that lien will be forgiven in the event of his or her death if there are no issue (child/children) surviving the homeowner.

Once a pre-application has been received, potentially eligible households will be contacted on a first-come, first-served basis for each program they have opted into.  Eligible households may wait 12-18 months before being contacted by the Township or its partners, as the Township manages limited funding and resource availability.  At that time, a full application will be sent to your household for completion; a link will be sent to the email address on file and a paper letter will be sent to the address with application completion information as well.  Paper applications can be requested.

Please note that due to federal regulations that govern our programs, many documents are required to fully certify your household’s eligibility for participation in all of the Owner-Occupied Rehabilitation Programs.  The Township may request additional documents not initially requested, if needed to determine eligibility under those federal requirements. After you submit your fully complete application to the Township of Abington, the Township will review the application package and determine full eligibility.

Once eligibility is established, the Program will schedule and conduct a comprehensive house inspection. The purpose of the comprehensive inspection is to detail any health, safety, or substandard code items that exist on the property. At least one major system must be deemed substandard to warrant participation in the Program. It is important to note that if a household is participating in the traditional OORP, the Program requires that the entire house be brought up to code to participate in the program. Please be prepared to have your property survey available for the inspection for the inspector’s review, and afterward for municipal permit application requirements, if needed.  A radon test will be performed on all houses. The Program will remediate actionable levels of radon discovered by test results. If the house was built prior to 1978, a lead paint risk assessment will also be performed. Lead-based paint hazards identified by the assessment will be remediated through the Program.

Participants in other programs other than the traditional OORP will have their inspections limited to the items covered by that program.

The Program Inspector will create a Work-Write-Up and Cost Estimate for your home’s rehabilitation, based upon the comprehensive inspection and, if applicable, the lead risk assessment report findings. A copy of the Work Write-Up, along with a contractor list, will be provided to participants for approval. Please note that all the work listed in the work write-up MAY NOT be included in the final project scope of work. Code, safety, and health related work items identified by the program inspector will take precedent over non-code work if elimination of work items is necessary. A final scope will be determined in consultation with the homeowner(s) in consideration of the above.

The Program will solicit bids by circulating bid packages to registered general contractors, previously vetted and qualified by the Township and the Program. If you know of a contractor that would like to submit a bid on the job, they must contact the Program to request a bid package and meet the Program qualifications before their bid can be certified.

The submitted bids will be reviewed by the Program Inspector and the homeowner in consultation with the Township. Generally, the lowest responsible bid from a qualified contractor will be chosen. The homeowner may select a contractor with a higher bid but must pay the difference between the contractor chosen and the lowest responsible bid. Homeowner contribution of the cost difference is to be provided (via certified or bank check) at the pre-construction meeting.

A pre-construction conference/loan closing meeting will be conducted in order to complete the construction agreement (between the resident and contractor), execute the program mortgage and mortgage note (between the resident and Township), and answer any questions any parties may still have. Following this meeting, the contractor will obtain any necessary permits and the construction phase will begin.

Program personnel will manage the construction process which will include progress and final inspections. The contractor will close out construction permits; provide warranty information and case closeout documentation. The Township will pay the contractor directly upon program inspection approval of work completed. Program participants will adhere to the Program’s decisions.

• All areas of the house must be readily accessible, uncluttered, and clean for the duration of homeowner participation. This is in anticipation of the Program Inspector and contractors needs for proper and sanitary access for inspections and construction work progress. Program work including inspections, program loan closing and construction are conducted during normal weekday business hours. Please be prepared to plan accordingly.
• All household members must be disclosed in your application. If evidence of any additional undisclosed household members is discovered during case processing, the Township has the right to terminate your case for falsifying information and the Township has the right to penalize you for related case administration cost. It is your responsibility to call the Township of Abington if you need clarification on household members.

• Section 203(k) Loan Program: Click here to learn more.
• CAADC Weatherization Program: Click here to learn more.
• PHFA Resource List for Home Repairs, Modifications, and Assistive Technology: Click here to learn more.