The clock is running out on one of the largest homeowner relief programs in American history. The Homeowner Assistance Fund, a nearly $10 billion initiative created by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, is scheduled to close on September 30, 2026. For most homeowners in Indiana and Kentucky, the program has already shut its doors. But the end of HAF has implications that extend well beyond the last application, and understanding what comes next is critical for anyone who relied on this safety net or who may need similar help in the months ahead.

What the Homeowner Assistance Fund Was

Congress created the Homeowner Assistance Fund in March 2021 as part of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act. The program allocated approximately $9.961 billion to states, territories, and tribal entities to help homeowners who had been financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The funds could be used for a range of housing-related expenses:

• Delinquent mortgage payments
• Property taxes
• Homeowners insurance premiums
• Homeowners association fees and dues
• Utility payments, including electricity, gas, water, and internet
• Home repairs necessary to maintain habitability

Unlike many federal programs, HAF was administered at the state level, which meant each state designed its own application process, set its own eligibility criteria, and determined how the funds were distributed. The U.S. Department of the Treasury provided oversight and set the September 30, 2026, deadline for all obligations to be completed.

Indiana's Program: Closed and Winding Down

Indiana's Homeowner Assistance Fund was administered by the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA) through the Indiana Foreclosure Prevention Network. The program, known as IHAF, is now closed to new applications.

When it was active, IHAF provided forgivable zero-interest loans of up to $30,000 to qualified homeowners. The funds could be used to make monthly mortgage payments while the homeowner re-established financial stability, or to bring a delinquent mortgage current.

The loan structure included an important incentive to stay in the home: 20 percent of the loan was forgiven every 12 months, meaning that a homeowner who remained in the property for five years owed nothing. However, if the borrower sold the property before the five-year period expired, all net sale proceeds, up to the full outstanding principal balance, were due and payable to IHCDA.

What Existing IHAF Borrowers Need to Know

If you received assistance through IHAF, your loan is still active and the forgiveness timeline is still running. Here are the key details:

• Forgiveness schedule: 20 percent of your loan is forgiven each year you remain in the home, starting from the date of disbursement.
• Sale or refinance: If you sell or refinance before the five-year mark, you will owe the remaining balance. IHCDA holds a lien on your property until the loan is fully forgiven or repaid.
• Lien releases: For questions about payoff amounts, forgiveness status, or lien releases, contact IHCDA directly at [email protected].

The wind-down of the program does not affect existing borrowers' forgiveness schedules. If you received IHAF funds in 2023, for example, your five-year clock continues to run through 2028 regardless of when the overall program closes.

Kentucky's Program: Also Closed

Kentucky's Homeowner Assistance Fund was managed through the Team Kentucky Homeowner Assistance Fund, administered by the Kentucky Housing Corporation. The state received approximately $85.4 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds for the program.

Kentucky's program stopped accepting new applications on June 30, 2025. When it was operational, qualifying homeowners could receive up to $60,000 in assistance, a cap that was increased from the original $35,000 limit in October 2022 to better address the scope of pandemic-related hardship.

The program covered delinquent mortgage payments, property taxes, homeowners and flood insurance, homeowners association fees, and utility costs. Kentucky homeowners who received assistance should contact the Kentucky Homeownership Protection Center at protectmykyhome.org for information about their existing obligations.

The National Picture: A Patchwork of Closures

Indiana and Kentucky are far from alone in closing their HAF programs before the September 2026 deadline. According to the National Council of State Housing Agencies, most state HAF programs have exhausted their funding and stopped accepting applications. A handful of states with larger allocations or slower deployment timelines still have active programs, but they are the exception.

Georgia, for example, announced that its mortgage assistance program would stop accepting new applications on March 31, 2026. Montana discontinued its HAF Home Repairs Program. The Treasury Department released a HAF Closeout Checklist in March 2025 to guide states through the administrative process of winding down their programs.

The September 30, 2026, deadline is firm. After that date, no new HAF obligations can be made, and any unspent funds will be returned to the federal government.

What Fills the Gap After HAF?

The expiration of HAF leaves a significant gap in the homeowner safety net, particularly for borrowers who are struggling but do not qualify for traditional loss mitigation options. Here is what remains available:

FHA Loss Mitigation Options

If you have an FHA-insured mortgage, your servicer is required to evaluate you for a range of loss mitigation options before initiating foreclosure. These include special forbearance, loan modification, and partial claim, where HUD provides a subordinate lien to cover your past-due amounts. FHA loss mitigation is not a temporary program. It is a permanent feature of the FHA insurance system.

HUD-Approved Housing Counseling

Free housing counseling remains available through HUD-approved agencies. In Indiana, the Indiana Foreclosure Prevention Network at 1-877-GET-HOPE (1-877-438-4673) connects homeowners with counselors who can review their situation, help them understand their options, and communicate with their servicers. These services are confidential and provided at no cost.

Indiana's Settlement Conference Process

Indiana law provides homeowners with the right to request a settlement conference during the foreclosure process. This is a court-supervised mediation where the homeowner and the lender attempt to negotiate an alternative to foreclosure. The judge cannot sign the foreclosure order until the settlement conference has taken place, and the lender is required to send a representative with authority to negotiate.

This process is separate from HAF and will continue to be available after the program expires. It is one of the most important protections available to Indiana homeowners, and it is underutilized. If you are facing foreclosure in Indiana, request a settlement conference immediately.

Hardest Hit Fund Legacy

Indiana's earlier Hardest Hit Fund program, which preceded HAF, provided similar assistance through forgivable zero-interest loans. While HHF is also no longer accepting applications, existing HHF borrowers with active loans should continue to monitor their forgiveness schedules and contact the Indiana Foreclosure Prevention Network with questions.

The Policy Conversation Going Forward

The expiration of HAF comes at an awkward time. Foreclosure filings have risen for 11 consecutive months, housing affordability remains strained, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which historically served as a watchdog for mortgage servicing practices, has been significantly weakened under the current administration.

There is no replacement program on the horizon at the federal level. Congress has not introduced legislation to extend HAF or create a successor program, and the current political environment makes new housing spending unlikely in the near term.

This means that the responsibility for preventing foreclosure falls increasingly on three parties: the homeowner, who must engage early and proactively with their servicer; the servicer, who is required by federal regulation to offer loss mitigation before foreclosing; and HUD-approved housing counselors, who serve as the critical intermediary between the two.

Five Steps to Take Before September 2026

Whether or not you received HAF assistance, here is what you should do before the program officially closes:

• Check your IHAF or Kentucky HAF loan status. If you received assistance, confirm your forgiveness schedule and remaining balance. Make sure your contact information with the administering agency is current.
• Review your mortgage health. Pull your most recent mortgage statement and check whether your escrow account is short. Escrow shortages from rising insurance premiums or property taxes are a leading cause of payment shock.
• Build a financial buffer. If possible, start setting aside even a small amount each month specifically for housing costs. The loss of HAF means there is no federal backstop for the next disruption.
• Know your servicer's loss mitigation process. If you experience a financial hardship, your first call should be to your mortgage servicer. Ask specifically about forbearance, modification, and partial claim options.
• Save the counseling hotline. Indiana: 1-877-GET-HOPE. HUD national hotline: 1-800-569-4287. These resources are free and remain available after HAF closes.

The Takeaway

The Homeowner Assistance Fund helped thousands of Indiana and Kentucky families stay in their homes during one of the most disruptive periods in modern history. Its expiration does not mean that help is unavailable, but it does mean that the help that remains requires more initiative from the homeowner.

If you are stable, use the remaining months to strengthen your financial position. If you are struggling, use them to explore every option while the maximum number of resources are still in play. September 30, 2026, is not a cliff, but it is the end of a chapter in federal housing assistance that is unlikely to be repeated anytime soon.