[StBernard] NBC: FEMA sets deal for 1,500 Katrina homes

[Westley Annis]

NBC: FEMA sets deal for 1,500 Katrina homes 
Agency to place families in homes donated by Fannie Mae early next week

By NBC News Investigative Unit
NBC News
Updated: 4:38 p.m. ET Nov. 23, 2005


The Federal Emergency Management Agency has struck a Thanksgiving-eve deal
to place needy Katrina families in 1,500 private homes rent-free for the
next 18 months, NBC News learned on Wednesday.

The deal comes after two months of delay, and growing criticism from
lawmakers and the media.

FEMA will begin placing families in the private, single-family homes early
next week.

Fannie Mae, the giant housing-finance investor, is donating the 1,500
foreclosed-loan houses in nine Southern states to families that lost their
homes to Hurricane Katrina.

The states are: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi,
Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. 

NBC News located a dozen of the homes, which are in solid condition and in
desirable neighborhoods in Houston, Dallas, Baton Rogue, Atlanta and other
locations.

Announcement follows criticism
In a statement to NBC Wednesday, FEMA said, "In our partnership with Fannie
Mae, we're able to meet the privacy needs of displaced families while
providing them warm and safe homes, just in time for the holidays."

Lawmakers, including Mississippi Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson, had
criticized FEMA for not accepting the generous housing offer when Fannie Mae
first offered the houses in September. FEMA turned down that deal because it
worried that the privacy of Katrina families would be violated if
prospective buyers wanted to come and inspect the homes.

But after repeated inquiries from NBC News, the agency announced it would
begin placing storm-affected families in the homes starting next week, and
that it had worked out all its privacy concerns - two months after the
initial offer.

On Tuesday, FEMA extended its hotel housing program by a month in 10 states
where most of the homeless evacuees sought shelter after Katrina and Rita.
The announcement followed criticism that the agency was pushing hurricane
victims out before the holidays.

More than 46,000 families in those states now have until Jan. 7 to move out
of hotels and into travel trailers, mobile homes or apartments until they
find permanent homes. 

In all, FEMA is paying for 49,826 hotel rooms for hurricane victims at an
estimated $3 million a day. The hotel program has cost the agency at least
$300 million since Katrina hit Aug. 29, followed by Rita on Sept. 24. At its
height, FEMA was housing 85,000 families in hotels. 

NBC's Jim Popkin and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

C 2005 MSNBC.com

URL: http://msnbc.msn.com/id/10182473/