No proof JD Vance provided ‘furnished apartments’ for North Carolina Hurricane Helene victims

It’s just over one week into President Donald Trump’s second term, and some social media users are talking up what they see as the administration’s achievements. 

On TikTok, one user said Vice President JD Vance found furnished residences for people in North Carolina whom Hurricane Helene displaced. 

"JD Vance is in North Carolina, and he’s found furnished apartments to put the people in that have been living in tents, let’s talk about it," a woman in a Jan. 24 TikTok video said. She cited no source for the claims she made in the video, which had been liked more than 340,000 times as of Jan. 28. 

"JD Vance — four days into his job — is in North Carolina," she continued. "He’s miraculously found furnished apartments — very nice furnished apartments — to take the people that are living in tents — that have been living in tents in freezing cold temperatures, and he’s giving those apartments to them." 

Text overlaid on the video read: "JD Vance finds apartments for North Carolina Hurricane Helene victims."

TikTok identified this video as part of its efforts to counter inauthentic, misleading or false content. (Read more about PolitiFact’s partnership with TikTok.)

(Screenshot from TikTok)

There are problems with this TikTok video’s claims. First, Vance has not visited North Carolina since he was sworn in as vice president Jan. 20. (In December, after Trump’s victory, Vance and his wife, Usha visited Fairview, North Carolina, to meet with first responders and evaluate hurricane damage and recovery efforts.)

On Jan. 27, Vance traveled to Damascus, Virginia, to survey Hurricane Helene’s destruction and meet with local leaders to discuss the continuing response. In remarks there, Vance said the Virginia trip was his first as vice president. 

"This is, I think, my seventh day on the job," he said. "And this is an incredible place to have my first official trip. I heard so many good stories of good people helping their neighbors rebuild."

He said he’d heard countless stories of people volunteering time and money to help people repair or reconstruct their homes and businesses.

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During his remarks, Vance criticized what he characterized as unhelpful federal bureaucracy. Some North Carolinians have complained that FEMA’s response — including the Transitional Sheltering Assistance program, which provides the hotel stays — is confusing, frustrating and too slow. 

Trump, meanwhile, visited North Carolina on Jan. 24 and promised the administration would increase "housing solutions" for the region that extend beyond measures such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s temporary hotel stays.  

Neither Vance nor Trump said hurricane victims in Virginia or North Carolina would be provided furnished apartments, however. 

When we searched using Google and the Nexis news archive, we found no credible reports or information supporting claims that Vance or the Trump administration had provided furnished apartments for Hurricane Helene victims in North Carolina. 

When the claim circulated on X, community notes appended on the posts said the posts might have confused North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein’s Jan. 2 executive order to increase the state’s temporary housing supply with something the Trump administration had introduced. 

In one of his first acts as governor, Stein, a Democrat, waived procurement regulations and authorized the North Carolina Department of Public Safety to buy up to 1,000 transportable temporary housing units. Some of those units began arriving Jan. 17, WLOS-TV in Asheville, North Carolina, reported.

Stein’s office said questions about the federal government’s efforts should go to FEMA. PolitiFact contacted FEMA and received no response before publication. 

Justin Graney, North Carolina Emergency Management spokesperson, said the agency knew nothing about the TikTok video’s claim. 

"(North Carolina Emergency Management) is unaware that any disaster survivors reported to be living in tents have been provided with furnished apartments," he said, though he acknowledged it was possible such housing accommodations might be tied to a FEMA program. "It is important to note that those living in tents have been approached multiple times by local government officials, state government officials, and FEMA personnel and have been provided with information on available programs and resources."

He encouraged anyone living in a tent who needs assistance to call the North Carolina Disaster Case Management Program at 1-844-746-2326.

We rate the claim that Vance was in North Carolina and found furnished apartments for the state’s hurricane victims False.

PolitiFact Researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.

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