BATON ROUGE - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded the Louisiana Housing Corporation a total of $483,583. The money will be used to help individuals and families access HUD-approved housing counseling that will teach them how to avoid foreclosure and make informed home buying/rental choices.  

The grants, which were awarded Tuesday, are meant to support those experiencing financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

HUD-approved housing counseling agencies are equipped to help households find affordable rental housing, offer financial literacy training to individuals and families, and provide foreclosure prevention counseling.

In addition to providing counseling to homeowners and renters, HUD-approved housing counseling agencies support emergency preparedness and disaster recovery efforts, assist homeless persons in finding transitional housing, and help seniors determine whether a reverse mortgage makes sense for them.

Individuals interested in contacting a HUD-approved counselor should either visit HUD's website or call (800) 569-4287 for the organization's interactive telephone directory.