FEMA Buyout Funds Delayed for California Landslide Victims
Two years after a landslide rendered homes uninhabitable on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in California, residents remain in financial limbo as FEMA has failed to disburse $42 million in voluntary buyout funds. The City of Rancho Palos Verdes announced the program in October 2024 to purchase damaged properties at their pre-slide market value and convert the land into open space. However, 22 qualified homeowners, including Matt Stelwagen, have received no payments despite the agreement being finalized. Stelwagen's family currently rents while carrying a mortgage on a structurally compromised home they cannot afford to rebuild. The delay between the federal agency's commitment and actual funding delivery threatens to turn potential recovery into financial ruin for these families, highlighting significant bureaucratic hurdles in disaster relief distribution.
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FEMA Buyout Funds Delayed for California Landslide Victims
Two years after a landslide rendered homes uninhabitable on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in California, residents remain in financial limbo as FEMA has failed to disburse $42 million in voluntary buyout funds. The City of Rancho Palos Verdes announced the program in October 2024 to purchase damaged properties at their pre-slide market value and convert the land into open space. However, 22 qualified homeowners, including Matt Stelwagen, have received no payments despite the agreement being finalized. Stelwagen's family currently rents while carrying a mortgage on a structurally compromised home they cannot afford to rebuild. The delay between the federal agency's commitment and actual funding delivery threatens to turn potential recovery into financial ruin for these families, highlighting significant bureaucratic hurdles in disaster relief distribution.
WSJ.com: Real Estate