After 8 years, Hurricane Harvey victims move into brand new homes

Jacqueline Williams stood in disbelief at the entrance of her new home in Houston’s Sharpstown neighborhood, tears welling in her eyes.

“Oh my heavens, look James!” she exclaimed to her husband. “I can’t believe it!”

For the Williams family, this moment was eight years in the making, a direct result of Hurricane Harvey’s devastating impact in 2017.

That night, their world literally came crashing down around them.

“We were lying in the bed in the bedroom and the whole ceiling came in on us,” Williams recalled. “When we looked up, water was coming down through the fireplace. We called the insurance company and they said it wasn’t caused from the storm.”

Living in Dangerous Conditions

For years after Harvey, families across Houston lived in nearly uninhabitable conditions.

Thomas Mendoza, superintendent for RM Quality Construction, witnessed home after home that desperately needed rehabilitation or to be torn down and rebuilt.

“I saw extension cords running everywhere,” Mendoza said of another home he recently finished building. “It was musty. The AC wasn’t fully running. There was nothing really functioning in the house. She had a couple window units, but it was pretty rough.”

Across town in Sunnyside, Audrey Jordan’s story echoed the Williams’ experience.

“I had a bucket in the garage because I could look up to the sky,” Jordan said. “I unplugged everything all the time. I didn’t go to sleep with the electric heaters on, the air conditioner, anything.”

A Massive Recovery Effort

The Texas General Land Office’s (GLO) rebuilding initiative has transformed communities across Southeast Texas, with 9,355 homes rebuilt for families impacted by Hurricane Harvey.

In Houston and Harris County alone, 2,770 homes have been completed, with just two properties remaining in the recovery program.

“We’ve done about 13,000 houses in various different programs helping folks recover across different disasters,” said Brittany Eck of the Texas GLO.

The Cost of Rebuilding

For many families, the program represented their only hope for recovery. “We couldn’t afford to do what needed to be did,” James Jackson Sr. said of their situation.

According to Mendoza, the cost to repair many of these homes exceeded their value.

“The engineer does a structural assessment and when they say that the cost to repair far exceeds the value of the house, that’s when they qualify for a new house,” Mendoza explained.

Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham acknowledged the lengthy timeline while expressing optimism about future disaster response.

“People aren’t necessarily impressed with our timeliness, but the process is the process in administering a federal program,” Buckingham said. “I think we will see improvements with Beryl all over what we saw with Harvey.”

As Houston closes this chapter of Hurricane Harvey recovery, another chapter is already opening.

The state, along with Houston and Harris County, is starting to accept applications for damage from last year’s derecho and Hurricane Beryl.

For families like the Williams and Jordans, these new homes represent more than just shelter. They symbolize resilience and hope.

“I didn’t think in 2025 I’d have a new house,” Jordan reflected, standing in her finished home. “With God, all things are possible.”