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Beaufort Jasper Housing Trust highlights grants, home repairs and plan to access state housing fund
Summary
Claude Hicks told Hilton Head Island council the Beaufort Jasper Housing Trust funded home repairs and first‑time buyer assistance this year, made a $500,000 loan to a 64‑unit senior project, and plans to access the South Carolina Housing Trust Fund and launch a City of Beaufort home‑repair pilot.
Claude Hicks, representing the Beaufort Jasper Housing Trust, told the Hilton Head Island Town Council on June 3 that the regional housing organization spent its first year concentrating on workforce and affordable housing grants, home repairs and first‑time homebuyer assistance.
"We made a $500,000 loan to a 64‑unit new structure in Beaufort for seniors," Hicks said, and said that development is expected to finish between late August and mid‑September. He said the trust funded 17 first‑time homeowners during a difficult mortgage environment and awarded grants to eight recipients from 14 applications. Hicks said home repairs remain the single biggest demand and many grantees have waiting lists.
Hicks outlined next steps the trust proposes in Beaufort and Jasper counties: accessing the South Carolina Housing Trust Fund for home repairs (the trust is the only qualified local entity), hiring part‑time employees and an inspector to speed applications, launching a City of Beaufort‑focused home‑repair program with local matching funds, developing a land‑donation process, and convening a solutions forum on Sept. 24 to build a regional blueprint for workforce housing.
Council members asked what the town could do beyond appointing a board member. Hicks said Hilton Head could "help open some of those doors" by communicating local needs and adopting practices that have worked elsewhere. He flagged heirs' property and deferred maintenance as critical local concerns: "If we don't address it, all of those houses are gonna go into disrepair," he said.
The presentation emphasized the Trust's regional partnership model and the need for coordinated public‑private funding. Hicks said the trust had requested $7 million in legislative earmarks this session (which were withdrawn at the state level) and that the organization will pursue a mix of federal, state, local and private funds to sustain programs.
The council offered general support and probed coordination on funding and oversight. Hicks said the trust would continue evaluating first‑round grantees and may announce a second grant cycle after assessing first‑round outcomes.
The meeting proceeded to other agenda items.
