February 19, 2008 – The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development has contracted with Socialserve.com to bring enhanced disaster housing services to the residents of Maryland through their customized Socialserve.com housing locator, MDHousingSearch.org.

The first step to restoring stability after a disaster occurs is housing displaced victims. Socialserve.com has provided vital housing information through numerous natural disasters, from Atlantic hurricanes to wildfires in Southern California to Midwestern tornadoes. In the weeks after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, Socialserve.com provided over 151,000 referrals for housing and is still helping victims relocate today. From the breadth and depth of these experiences comes the Socialserve.com Disaster Intervention package, a new option for regions that contract with Socialserve.com for their acclaimed housing locator system.

MDHousingSearch.org serves as the backbone of the State of Maryland’s disaster housing plan. With a database of existing housing stock in place before catastrophe hits, relief can be delivered more rapidly to residents in the event of a disaster.

Regions with a Socialserve.com housing locator service in place are already ahead of the game with the advantage of a free-to-use, up-to-date database of available housing to place people immediately. Disaster Intervention from Socialserve.com includes, among other in-depth services, a rapid press push in a time of disaster to let people know about a comprehensive place to advertise and find emergency housing. In addition, extended call center hours and a detailed resource list to refer victims to the area support network mean optimal access to crucial information during a critical time.

Socialserve.com is a national 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization and the country's leading provider of affordable housing locator services.

For more information about how Socialserve.com can serve you in the event of a disaster, please contact Nina Fedele at 704-334-8722.