Programs to Help the Military Sell Their Home When Moving

The HAP program helps military personnel sell their home or pay off their mortgage.Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images

If a member of the military or a dependent needs to sell his home, but can't, the Department of Defense (DOD) has a program to assist with this. This program is known as the Homeowners Assistance Program (HAP), and it is designed to help homeowners who need to sell their home, but live in an area where selling it is difficult.

HAP

The HAP program allows a homeowner to receive compensation for the sale of their house, and this compensation is calculated at 95 percent of the fair market value of the property, minus the appraised value when it is sold or the price it sold at. You also receive reimbursement for your closing costs. If you cannot sell your property in the private market, the government may pay off your mortgage or purchase your home for 75 percent of the purchase price.

To be eligible for this program, you must live in an area where either a base closure or realignment action has taken place; a realignment action is when a base loses either 300 civilian, or a total of 400, positions. You must also be a member of the military or a Federal civilian worker, and you must own your own home and have lived in it since May 13, 2005.

Besides the standard HAP program, the DOD has an Expanded HAP program, which is known s the Wounded, Injured, III Warriors and Surviving Spouses of Fallen Warriors. You qualify for this program if you need to move to receive treatment for a military-related injury, or if you are 30 percent or more disabled due to your injury. Civilian employees can also receive this assistance if they were injured during duty and need to move for treatment purposes. You must have owned your home when you deployed. Surviving spouses can also receive assistance under this program if they have to move within two years of the spouse's death.

Another Expanded HAP program is for military personnel who are reassigned to a different area and need to sell their home during a mortgage crisis. To qualify for this program, the military must have permanently reassigned you between February 1, 2006 and September 30, 2010, and you must have bought your home prior to July 1, 2006. The area that you live in must have a decline of 10 percent or more in home values, and the home must be your primary residence.

You can download all the necessary documents from the HAP program website, and you must submit the completed application to the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for your area.