[StBernard] News You Can Use - 10/7/05

[Westley Annis]

October 7, 2005


  /Huge FEMA News/

On September 24^th , FEMA announced through much fanfare that they would 
be sending out “Rental Assistance” checks in the amount of $2,358 to the 
people who were affected by Katrina.

That’s when the confusion started. Over the past 10 days, some people 
have received checks, while others were overlooked. Those of us who were 
overlooked would call the help line (I bet you’ve got that memorized by 
now) and were given any variation of reasons for not receiving any of 
these funds. Some were told their homes were inhabitable; true if you 
don’t mind living without water, sewerage, and electricity in 8 – 10 
inches of toxic mud. Some were told they were not eligible because they 
had insurance. In the end, we could not find any common thread to tell 
us why some had received funds while others were overlooked.

In a never-ending pursuit of important facts to relay to you, your 
faithful investigative reporter pulled out his “press” badge and began 
contacting public affairs officers at FEMA. I figured if anyone 
understood the program, they should.

One public affairs spokesman in the FEMA regional offices in Austin, TX 
told me that if my house was damaged, I should get the benefit, no 
matter what else was in my circumstances. His suggestion was to contact 
the help line. When I mentioned to him that I had done that and gotten 
turned down not once but twice, he said call again and be persistent. 
Good advice. I will not print his name here in order to avoid 
embarrassment.

Then I started dialing people in Washington. After several phone calls, 
I was given the number to the “NEWS DESK” in Baton Rouge. One phone call 
to this office was all it took. I explained my plight, mentioning that I 
was writing a story and wanted to report accurate information, and 
voila, accurate information was what I got.

The reason I was not receiving any Rental Assistance benefits was that 
on my application, I listed the cause of damage to my house as wind / 
tornado. I didn’t put “flood” as a source of damage. According the “News 
desk”, listing “flood” as a source of damage to your house would trigger 
the benefit.

So my advice to all of you who are still waiting on the Rental 
Assistance program from FEMA to kick in, verify with them that you have 
“FLOOD” listed as a cause of damage to your property. If you don’t have 
it, you won’t get the benefits.

Let’s hope this little tidbit frees up more of the FEMA funds for our 
residents.


  /More FEMA News for Employers/

I attended a meeting last week and learned two things you may find 
helpful. First off, the Louisiana Department of Economic Development 
(LDED) has secured a whole mess of FEMA trailers to be distributed to 
employers in the affected areas.

The theory is this. You may want to re-open your business, but you can’t 
because your employees have no place to sleep. To help streamline the 
trailer process, LDED has taken possession of FEMA trailers and will 
distribute them to employers who can use them to get things rolling 
again. They are trying to cut down on some of the onerous FEMA paperwork 
and give you a shortcut.

I have attached to this e mail a letter and two forms related to this 
trailer procurement program. Handwritten on the letter is the fax number 
you can use to deliver your request. Unfortunately, I’m not as up to 
speed on this program as I’d like to be, but instead of waiting until I 
got it perfect, I opted to send it out to you now. My recommendation if 
you are an employer and feel you may benefit from this program, contact 
the people mentioned in the letter. They can fill you in on the details.


  /SBA News – DO NOT OVERLOOK THIS/

The second thing I learned at last week’s meeting was that everyone, and 
I did say everyone, should apply for an SBA loan. Let me repeat. 
Everyone should apply for an SBA loan.

I have written on SBA loans in previous editions and quite frankly, was 
not impressed with what I understood about them. Some of my skepticism 
was transformed into excitement after meeting with an SBA representative 
face to face. At that time, I was left with the very clear impression 
that everyone should apply for a loan.

You should apply even if you don’t think you will need the loan. 
Processing the application could take a while given the tremendous 
amount of applications they anticipate receiving. It’s best to get your 
application in early.

If you are approved (and I was led to believe that most applicants are 
approved for something) you don’t have to take possession of the funds 
until you need them. More importantly, you don’t have to pay interest on 
the loans until you take possession of the funds. If you don’t ever need 
the funds, you simply tell them “no thanks” and that’s it. You owe nothing.

It costs nothing to apply and could reap you some nice benefits. For 
example, some applicants will have up to $200,000 available as a 
mortgage on their home at a rate of 2.687% for 30 years.

Assuming a $150,000 mortgage at the current market rate of 6% for 30 
years, your payment before escrows would be $912. At a rate of 2.687%, 
your payments would be $630, or a $282 per month savings.

I don’t know about you, but for an opportunity to save over $100,000 in 
interest costs over 30 years, I’m taking the time to complete some 
paperwork.

There are even situations where you can refinance your mortgage with an 
SBA loan.

Go to www.SBA.gov for details. Click on the “disaster recovery” tab and 
start looking around.

FYI, I mailed off my completed SBA application today.


  /Do You Have a Small Business Looking for Work?/

The SBA also has opportunities for small businesses to be contracted in 
the rebuilding efforts. If you have a small business that wants a piece 
of the action, call 1 800 333 4636 to get more data. If you prefer to 
get your information off the internet, here’s the website that has more 
information on this program.

http://www.sba.gov/news/05-58-katrina-contracting.pdf


  /A LITTLE COMMERCIAL TIME/

Are you wondering what to do when you receive your check in settlement 
of your flood policy?

For many, these checks will total over $100,000. These funds need to be 
placed somewhere safe, so they are available to you when you need them 
to rebuild your house, or purchase another property. Do not be tempted 
to have someone “put these funds to work for you in the market.”

Many of you know that professionally, I am a Certified Financial Planner 
professional. If you would like to receive information on a */federally 
insured savings account/* paying very attractive rates on money held 
until it will be used to rebuild, please give me a call or reply to this 
e mail. This account has no fees or minimums and is insured by the FDIC. 
I’d be happy to tell you about it and give you the details.

*/The Voice Runs Tomorrow/*

Tomorrow, the St. Bernard Voice newspaper will be published for the 
first time since Katrina hit. The Voice’s tireless publisher, E M Roy 
has busted his back to get this paper out. The paper has been published 
since 1890 and is the official journal for St. Bernard parish. 
Congratulations E M, and thank you for carrying on a tradition that has 
a 114 year legacy.

That’s all for now.

DISCLAIMER: This e mail is intended to help those of us who have been 
impacted by Hurricane Katrina. It may contain information that is 
somewhat legal in nature or affect your taxes.

References to legal or tax considerations are intended only to alert you 
in a general way of those considerations which may effect you. We do not 
engage in the practice of law. All legal considerations must be referred 
to and passed upon by your attorney. All tax considerations should be 
reviewed by your tax preparer.
Paul V. Perez
Certified Financial Planner
Financial Network Investment Corporation, Member SIPC
7642 Old Hammond Highway
Baton Rouge, LA 70809
(504) 494 3144
(225) 248 6635
(225) 208 1885 (fax)