Housing assistance for earthquake victims: the real route

On August 10th, the earth shook at 7:34 a.m., and thousands of families in western Colombia took to the streets with only the clothes on their backs. Ten days later, the question we hear most often isn't what happened: it's what comes next. housing assistance for earthquake victims They're already underway and progressing in stages, but they're not requested through a national form nor are they provided by a single entity. First comes the technical assessment of the house, then rental assistance, and only finally the home improvement or new housing. Here we explain who manages each stage and which agency to contact.

What housing assistance is available today in Colombia for earthquake victims?

On August 14, 2026, the Ministry of Housing published the statement Together we rebuild the homeland, Housing is the cornerstone of the Miracle Reconstruction Plan. It is led by the Presidency with the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management and has declared four fronts.

• Diagnosis and rental. The UNGRD is working with local authorities to provide rental subsidies while assessing the condition of affected homes.
• Miracle Housing. It works with Camacol to identify completed social housing projects ready for immediate delivery in the affected areas.
• Improvements. Priority is given to houses with repairable damage that can be restored to adequate living conditions.
• Rural component. The Agricultural Bank and the National Federation of Coffee Growers are joining the reconstruction efforts in the countryside.

None of them activate on their own. Housing assistance for earthquake victims all starts at the same point: someone has to go to your property and leave a written report detailing its condition.

Who decides if your home is habitable, repairable, or needs to be demolished?

That decision isn't made by the family or the landlord: it's made by the technical review conducted by the local government in conjunction with the municipal risk management council. From there comes the classification that determines everything else. Habitable: no rental assistance available. Recoverable damage: the solution is improvement. To be demolished: you enter the new housing program.

That document is also your proof. In Manizales, the support is provided upon presentation of the property inspection form, in original and copy, along with your ID, and requires that the family has been evacuated and that the inspection form is signed. If you left in an emergency and no one has come to inspect the property, the first thing to do is not to seek the subsidy: it is to request a visit from the mayor's office.

How does temporary rental support work and who provides it?

Of all the housing assistance programs for earthquake victims, this is the one where people get most confused, and with good reason: the amount and duration aren't set by a national regulation, but rather by each municipality through a decree. The UNGRD provides the resources and the coordination; it's your local mayor's office that decides how much and for how long.

The case that was published with a number and date is that of Manizales: Ordinary Decree 0276 of August 14, 2026, allocates a monthly support payment of 357,000 pesos, for one month for those who were renting and for three months for evacuated homeowners, with the possibility of extension depending on how the emergency evolves. There, the reception, verification, and distribution are handled by the Colombian Red Cross, Caldas branch.

That applies to Manizales. In Pereira, Armenia, Cali, or Quibdó, the amount, deadline, and service point may be different. Therefore, the correct question at the mayor's office isn't how much they're giving, but rather which decree applies here and where to receive it. Outside of the emergency, other programs are in place, which we explain in [reference to relevant section]. solidarity rental subsidy y rental subsidy.

What happens to families who lost their entire home?

That's where Vivienda Milagro comes in. The Ministry's stated strategy isn't to start building from scratch: it's to work with Camacol to find completed social housing projects ready for delivery in the affected areas, with the support of compensation funds, the Banco Agrario, and the financial sector involved in the final stages. Miracle House We explain where the program comes from, and in What is social housing? What type of house is being offered?.

This is the slowest stage of the housing assistance process for earthquake victims, and the amount per family and the allocation schedule have not yet been publicly defined. We will update this information here as soon as that information is available.

How many families were affected and why do the numbers change every day?

According to the Colombian Geological Survey, the earthquake was of magnitude 7.4, occurred on August 10, 2026, at 7:34 a.m., with its epicenter approximately 12 kilometers from San José del Palmar, in the Chocó department, and at a depth of about 103 kilometers. The UNGRD report, as of 6:30 a.m. on August 18, 2026, recorded damage in 15 departments and 472 municipalities: 304 deaths, 4,548 injuries, 134,342 damaged homes, 29,554 homes destroyed or uninhabitable, 267 collapsed buildings, and 123,789 families displaced.

These figures rise daily because the municipal censuses are arriving in stages. This has a practical consequence: what determines whether you qualify for housing assistance for earthquake victims is not the national total, but the census of your municipality, including your property.

Stages and entities taken from the statement Together we rebuild the homeland, Published by the Ministry of Housing on August 14, 2026. The impact assessment is from the report of the UNGRD as of August 18, 2026, and the earthquake parameters are from Colombian Geological Survey. Amounts and deadlines are set by each municipal decree.

Common mistakes that leave a family out

• Wait for a national form. There is no single online registration for the entire country. The entry point is the mayor's office of the affected municipality and the technical inspection of the property.
• Leaving without leaving a trace. If you were evacuated and no one recorded the visit, you'll have no way to prove you were there. Request the inspection form and keep the original.
• Pay a manager. None of the stages of this route are free. If someone asks you for money to give you a spot in advance, it's a scam, and we know them well: check out our guide on... subsidy scams.

Frequently asked questions about aid after the earthquake

These are the most frequently asked questions we receive about housing assistance for earthquake victims.

Do I need to register on any government website?
There is no single national registry for this support. Rental subsidies are provided by the UNGRD in coordination with local authorities, so the application process is handled in your municipality.

How much do they offer for temporary rent?
It depends on the decree from your mayor's office. In Manizales, it was set at 357,000 pesos per month. In other municipalities, the amount may be different, and there is no single national amount published.

I was renting, I didn't own the place. Do I qualify too?
Yes. In Manizales, the support covers both tenants and evacuated homeowners, with different timeframes for each. Confirm how it's defined in your municipality.

What if my house is still standing but has cracks?
That's the improvement scenario. You still need the technical inspection: it's what determines if the damage is repairable.

How Hepacom accompanies you

We are the Hechos Para la Comunidad Foundation and we work for the decent housing in Colombia. We don't manage or allocate government subsidies, and we don't charge for explaining how housing assistance works for earthquake victims. What we do is keep this information up-to-date and support families so they don't have to go to the office alone. If you are an affected family, or a company that wants to contribute to the reconstruction, write to us at donaciones@hepacom.org or leave us your details at contact us.

A house isn't just a paperwork. It's the place where a family can sleep peacefully again. The right exists, and knowing how to exercise it is half the battle.

Last updated: August 2026.

Information guide. The process is handled by the official entity. Verify on the official channel. Hepacom does not charge fees or manage payments. The impact figures change daily according to the UNGRD report, and the amounts and deadlines for rental assistance depend on each municipality's decree.