BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana renters who experienced losses due to the February tornadoes that damaged Livingston and Orleans parishes may be eligible for disaster recovery assistance from FEMA and the U.S Small Business Administration (SBA).
Renters may be eligible for grants from FEMA to help with such disaster-related expenses as:
Renting a new residence because the renter’s previous home is uninhabitable due to the tornadoes.Disaster-related medical and dental expenses.Replacement or repair of necessary personal property lost or damaged in the tornadoes. This includes appliances and furniture, textbooks and computers used by students and work equipment and tools used by the self-employed.Repair or replacement of vehicles damaged by the disaster.FEMA grants are not loans and do not have to be repaid. The grants are nontaxable and will not affect eligibility for Social Security, Medicaid, welfare assistance, SNAP benefits and several other programs.
Additionally, renters may qualify for low-interest disaster loans of up to $40,000 from the SBA to repair or replace personal property.
Renters who sustained losses can apply for assistance at DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling
800-621-3362 or TTY 800-462-7585. Those who use 711 or video relay service can call
800-621-3362. The toll-free telephone numbers are open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
For more information about disaster loans, call SBA’s Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit sba.gov/disaster. TTY users may call 800-877-8339. Applicants may also apply online using the Electronic Loan Application via SBA’s secure website at disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.
For more information on Louisiana disaster recovery, visit fema.gov/disaster/4300.
