$10,000 Grant for Home Improvement

The USDA Section 504 Home Repair Grant is the most well-known "$10,000 grant for home improvement" program. This federal grant provides up to $10,000 in a lifetime to very low-income homeowners age 62 or older who own and occupy homes in eligible rural areas.

Unlike a loan, this grant never has to be repaid. The funds are used to remove health and safety hazards from the home, such as repairing or replacing a failing roof, heating system, plumbing, electrical wiring, or making accessibility modifications for disabled household members.

To qualify, applicants must have very low income (typically under $30,000/year for a household, depending on location), be unable to obtain affordable credit elsewhere, and live in a rural area as defined by USDA (generally, towns under 20,000 population outside major metro areas).