HAC-Funded Projects
HAC Profile: Lee County C.D.C., ArkansasMARIANA/RUNDO SUBDIVISIONSHOP 2001 – $80,000 Raising twelve children in their three-bedroom mobile home, Clarence and Willa May Taylor had to park another trailer in the back yard for extra space. Taylor says he thought he was doing well when he bought that place, but the past year has been “the best ever” because his family is now living in a new home. The Taylors are retired and receive limited disability assistance. They could afford a new house because of the work of the Lee County Community Development Corporation (LCCDC), which used funding from the Housing Assistance Council (HAC) and other |
sources as well as technical assistance from HAC. A loan from HAC’s Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP) enabled Lee County CDC to prepare the sites in the Taylors’ small subdivision. Additional financing and “sweat equity” labor from the Taylor family brought the mortgage to an affordable level. “This is the best thing the CDC could do for the community,” says Clarence Taylor, gesturing to the neat yards and well-kept homes around his. “This is really a wonderful place to live.” The Taylors sold their old mobile home to a neighbor who intends to rent it to someone else. Perhaps the new tenants will be able to follow the Taylors’ path to better housing.
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HAC Profile: Community Action Commission of Fayette County, OhioVillage Green SubdivisionSHOP – 1996, $300,000 Julie Allen and her children Tess and Travis moved from a homeless shelter to an apartment to a home of their own, thanks to the Community Action Commission of Fayette County, (CACFC) and the Housing Assistance Council. In 1996, when Julie was pregnant, she left a domestic violence situation and became homeless. She moved into a homeless shelter run by the CACFC and then into supportive housing, which provided services and assistance as well as an apartment for the family. Julie’s next step was to enroll in the CACFC’s self-help housing program. A loan from HAC helped the CACFC to buy and prepare the land for the 75-unit subdivision in |
Bloomingburg, Ohio where Julie’s house was to be built. She and several of her neighbors worked together to help build each other’s houses. Their “sweat equity” replaced their down payments, helping them to afford to purchase their homes. Julie says she really values the safety and community spirit that homeownership has provided. Her children are thriving in the neighborhood, and she has an excellent job. In December 2002, she was a featured speaker before 800 people at the opening session of HAC’s National Rural Housing Conference, describing how self-help housing had changed her life.
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HAC Profile: Northeast C.A.C.SHOP ’99 – $181,818 Glenn Lawrence is proudly helping to build a house for his family in Moberly, Mo. Funding from the Housing Assistance Council (HAC) and the Rural Development arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture are enabling the Northeast Community Action Corporation (NECAC) to develop this house and 17 others. The homes are built using the “self-help” method. Because of their labor contribution, Glenn’s family’s house will cost about $79,000 to build but will be appraised at over $100,000. The family will obtain a mortgage from USDA, with payments scaled to fit their income. Northeast Community Action oversees the development process. A loan from the Housing Assistance Council’s Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program covers predevelopment costs such as architectural fees and lot preparation. Glenn’s mother, stepfather, and younger brother and sister will live in the modestly sized four-bedroom, two-bathroom house, which will be far more comfortable than the house they are now |
renting. The rental “isn’t too bad,” says Glenn, but then admits the roof leaks so seriously that one room is unusable. Since he lives on his own, Glenn will not move here with them, but he is glad to use his construction skills on their behalf. A graduate of NECAC’s youth training program, he hopes to make a career in construction.
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Learning about the self-help program was a side benefit of Glenn’s participation in the training program. He suggested to his mom, Patsy Hayden that she should apply, since she has always wanted her own house. Glenn is delighted to be helping her make that dream reality — just in time for her fiftieth birthday.
