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Housing Coordinator Jasmine Navarro recently helped a family of two parents and four children who were originally referred to Housing Choices by San Andreas Regional Center because of the toll that severe overcrowding was taking on the family. The six-person family, including nine-year-old Jose who has a developmental disability, rents a one-bedroom apartment in San Jose for $1500/month. The rent is more than half of the family’s monthly income from Jose’s father’s landscaping job but below San Jose’s market rent of more than $2,000/month for a one-bedroom apartment. This family’s story highlights the housing affordability crisis in Silicon Valley and shows how COVID-19 has exposed the inequities in our community’s housing marketplace.
Even before COVID-19, Jasmine’s assignment was daunting--help the family find open waiting lists for a three-bedroom affordable apartment in San Jose priced in the family’s Extremely Low-Income range. When COVID-19 caused Jose’s father to be laid off from his landscaping job, the situation acquired a new level of urgency. How would the family pay the rent and buy food for their children without an income? And because of COVID-19, overcrowding took a greater toll with all six family members at home 24/7.
San Jose is one of many cities that adopted a moratorium allowing rent to be deferred by families like Jose’s who had a loss of income because of COVID-19. But even with support from Jasmine, the family was afraid to ask the landlord for the rent deferral. Instead they used all their savings and borrowed more to pay the rent in April and again in May.
When Jose’s parents decided not to ask the landlord to defer the rent, Jasmine helped the family apply for emergency rental assistance from long-time community partner, Seasons of Sharing. But the family had been living in their one-bedroom apartment for more than five years and no longer had a copy of the lease, which was required for the application. Jasmine was able to get a copy of a lease from the property management company and submitted a successful Seasons of Sharing application to cover the June rent.
Although the rent was paid, the family had no money left to pay for food. Over the course of April and May, Jasmine referred Jose’s mother to food banks and also helped her secure Pandemic EBT, a program that funds food costs for children eligible for the school lunch program who are at home because of COVID-19.
Then at the end of May, Housing Choices was selected by Destination Home as a Grassroots Grantee of emergency financial assistance designed specifically for extremely low-income families like Jose’s. In June, the family was awarded $1,000 in emergency assistance to be used for any of their needs, including food and rent. In the meantime, Shelter in Place restrictions have been easing for landscaping businesses, and Jose’s father has been called back to work part-time with the hope of returning to full-time work by the end of June.
With help from Housing Choices and community partners, nine-year-old Jose’s family has gotten through the initial months of the pandemic. But they still face a Silicon Valley housing market that puts them at constant risk of homelessness and makes them desperate to hang on to their one-bedroom apartment. “We’ve shown that as a community we can join forces and help amazingly resilient families like Jose’s survive a pandemic,” said Jasmine. “Now we need to go further and solve the underlying housing affordability crisis.”
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Cities and Counties Extend Eviction Moratoria
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In the wake of Governor Newsom’s Executive Order allowing jurisdictions to extend their local ordinances preventing evictions based on nonpayment of rent for COVID-19 reasons, cities and counties in the Housing Choices’ service area continue to revise and extend their individual ordinances. Housing Choices’ dedicated team of Housing Coordinators continue to follow these developments in each city and county and are available to help people with developmental disabilities and their families decide whether rent deferral is the right choice for their circumstances. For example:
- The County of San Mateo recently extended through July 28, 2020, a countywide moratorium on eviction for non-payment of rent by residential tenants affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The County of Santa Clara has extended its moratorium through July 28 and also extended the timeframe for tenants to pay overdue rent.
- The City of Santa Clara extended its moratorium through June 30, while also funding an Emergency Rental Assistance Program for tenants who have had to defer rent payment due to COVID-19.
- The City of Mountain View has extended its moratorium through August 31, while also increasing to $2.6 million its fund for emergency rental assistance for residents unable to pay rent because of COVID-19.
The City of San Jose recently extended its moratorium to August 31 and adopted provisions that allow tenants to pay half of the overdue rent by the end of January 2021, with the remaining amount due by the end of June 2021.
City and county policies and resources to help prevent evictions caused by COVID-19 are changing weekly. Contact your Housing Coordinator at Housing Choices to learn more about the ordinance in your city or county and whether there is an emergency rental assistance fund for which you may qualify.
For a statewide solution, follow Assembly Member David Chiu’s bill in the California legislature, AB 1436. Chiu’s bill would provide for a statewide ban on evictions until 90 days after the state of emergency is lifted and would give tenants 15 months to pay rent that is overdue because of COVID-19.
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Good, Better, Best: A Six-Year Journey to Housing Happiness
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Anna’s housing story illustrates how adults with developmental disabilities often work with Housing Choices over a period of several years to move in stages from an acceptable housing solution to an ideal one. After working with Housing Choices for the last six years, Anna’s advice to people seeking affordable housing is, “Be willing to accept housing solutions that are good but not perfect, and then keep working with Housing Choices until you find housing happiness.” basis.
Anna was first referred to Housing Choices by her San Andreas Regional Center Service Coordinator in 2014. At age 50, Anna had been living successfully in a licensed community care home. Anna was ready to make the transition to living independently in her own apartment, but her choices were limited by her income. Housing Choices’ Watsonville Housing Coordinator, Janeth Garcia, started working with Anna on a housing plan that was based on her income, service needs, and geographic preferences.
Anna’s first move to greater independence was to a studio apartment at Plaza Grande Apartments in Salinas in July 2015. While Anna would have preferred a one-bedroom apartment, a studio was more affordable, and the smaller size would work for her because she did not require caregivers to help her on a regular basis.
Anna lived happily in her studio apartment while Janeth at Housing Choices continued to apply for waiting lists for one-bedroom apartments in her income range. In 2017, Janeth helped Anna apply for the waiting list for a Mainstream Housing Voucher with the Housing Authority of Monterey County. A voucher would expand Anna’s ability to qualify for more affordable housing because it would limit her share of the rent to 30% of her actual income. She was awarded her Mainstream Voucher almost two years later on July 1, 2019.
Plaza Grande was happy to accept the voucher at Anna’s studio apartment. This immediately lowered her rent while Janeth helped Anna look for a one-bedroom apartment in the Salinas area which would accept the voucher. In January 2020, California law was changed to prohibit landlords from refusing to accept applications because the tenants has a housing voucher, and this change also expanded Anna’s options. Finally, on June 1, 2020, Janeth supported Anna to make the move to a more spacious one-bedroom apartment at a senior housing property, Sherwood Village, in Salinas. With the help of the Mainstream Voucher, Anna can afford to pay the rent for a one-bedroom apartment and still has enough money left to pay for utilities, food, and other basic necessities. The property is within walking distance of shopping and other services, which also contributes to Anna’s independence.
Now at age 56 and officially a “senior”, Anna is happy at her new housing complex with tenants in her age group. She has begun to build a circle of support with other tenants and with the Property Manager of the Sherwood Village community. She looks forward to joining the senior social activities once Shelter in Place restrictions are lifted.
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Iamesi Village: Built with Love
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During the COVID-19 pandemic, construction continues on a new inclusive housing property in downtown San Jose, Iamesi Village. Formerly called North San Pedro Studios, the property is the sixth affordable housing property developed by First Community Housing with some apartments subject to a preference for people with developmental disabilities.
First Community Housing recently renamed North San Pedro Studios “Iamesi Village” to celebrate the life of its long-time Director of Development, Tom Iamesi, pictured above, who passed away on January 28, 2020. Tom was a dedicated advocate for the inclusion of people with developmental disabilities in affordable housing. He honored the journey of every tenant with disabilities toward a more independent and inclusive life.
Iamesi Village will create 135 studio and one-bedroom apartments for extremely low income and very low income households, including 23 apartments subject to a preference for people with developmental disabilities served by San Andreas Regional Center and Housing Choices. The project is expected to lease up in the summer of 2021.
Housing Choices is grateful for Tom’s life and leadership and for First Community Housing’s vision of affordable housing as a vehicle for justice, diversity, equity and inclusion.
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New BMR Apartments in Sunnyvale
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Greystar Development is now accepting applications for 40 new Below-Market Rate (BMR) rental apartments at the soon-to-open Savoy Apartments in Sunnyvale. Ten BMR apartments will be available starting in July 2020. Thirty BMR apartments are expected to be available by early 2021. The BMR apartments include 1 studio apartment, 23 one-bedroom units, and 15 two-bedroom units. People who already live or work in Sunnyvale will receive priority on the waiting list for the BMR units.
Ask your Housing Choices Housing Coordinator for help with the application OR review the maximum income and unit rents below to decide whether to apply using the Waiting List Application. Mail the completed application to:
Savoy Apartments Attn. BMR Waiting List
1159 Sonora Court, Suite 114
Sunnyvale, CA 94086
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IHSS Providers Declared “Essential”
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Housing Choices’ Rivertown Apartments resident Daniel, pictured above with his mother and IHSS provider, Nery, is one of 600,000 Californians who have sheltered in place in their own apartment with the aid of the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program. IHSS is a Medi-Cal program that pays for in-home care for seniors and people with disabilities, including children, so that the individual can safely remain at home instead of being moved to a group care setting like a nursing home or community care home.
The higher COVID-19 infection and death rates in group care settings has shone a spotlight on the role of IHSS in the lives of seniors and people with disabilities like Daniel. Governor Newsom declared IHSS providers “essential workers” in one of his earliest COVID-19 Executive Orders. In a recent California state budget compromise, the legislature rejected a proposed 7% rate cut to IHSS providers, acknowledging their role in limiting the impact of COVID-19 on the most vulnerable Californians.
Parents of a recipient of IHSS services can be paid as IHSS providers as long as they pass a criminal background check and are eligible to work in the United States. In fact, more than two-thirds of California’s IHSS workers like Nery are family members.
Some important changes have been made to the IHSS program in response to the impact of COVID-19 on both recipients and providers, including:
The authorized number of hours of service may be increased when the recipient has a loss of “alternative resources” caused by the closure of day programs, schools and child care centers.
A second parent of a child under 18 is not deemed “available” to provide care when they are at home because of COVID-19—at least until June 30, 2020.
IHSS providers are eligible for some paid COVID-19 Sick Leave through December 31, 2020.
Counties have been directed to prioritize assessments and services during COVID-19, including:
- Halting all program terminations and reductions of hours at least through June 30, 2020.
- Identifying “back-up” IHSS providers for recipients who lose caregivers because of COVID-19.
- Using virtual assessments and electronic documents as much as possible. When an in-home visit is needed, COVID-19 precautions must be followed.
- Allowing services to start before the receipt of the doctor’s Health Care Certification (SOC 873). The recipient can have 45 days to get the doctor to complete the form. This time can be extended another 45 days on request.
- Temporarily approving a provider without a criminal background check if the delay is caused by unavailability of the LiveScan process, at least until June 15.
Disability Rights California expects that some program changes due to expire in June 2020 may be extended and will report ongoing changes to the IHSS program in California.
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Support Inclusive Housing in Downtown Santa Cruz
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For the Future Housing, an affordable housing developer, in collaboration with Housing Choices and San Andreas Regional Center, is proposing to include 20 rental apartments for people with developmental disabilities at an affordable housing development planned in downtown Santa Cruz. The project, called Pacific Station Apartments, will provide a total of 85 rental apartments as well as ground floor commercial space at 325 Front Street.
For the Future Housing was selected to develop the site in a competitive process managed by the City of Santa Cruz. The developer has built more than 1,000 affordable apartments in northern and central California, including Housing Choices’ Partner Property, Water Street Apartments in the City of Santa Cruz, where eight apartments are subject to a preference for people with disabilities who require the coordinated on-site services provided by Housing Choices.
Like Water Street Apartments, Pacific Station Apartments will benefit from an award of Project-Based Vouchers by the Housing Authority of Santa Cruz County. Project-Based Vouchers make it possible for people with disabilities who require coordinated on-site services to meet minimum income requirements for the housing because the tenant’s share of the rent is limited to 30% of the tenant’s actual income.
The transfer of the land for the project will be voted on by the City Council on July 2. If you are a Santa Cruz city resident and would like to support For the Future Housing’s project, please send an email of support to citycouncil@cityofsantacruz.com by 5 pm on July 1. You can also contact Lizzy Speece at Housing Choices to stay informed as the project moves forward. Lizzy’s email is lizzy@housingchoices.org and her phone number is 831-722-3954.
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Support Inclusive Housing in Downtown San Mateo
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Housing Choices continues to advocate for inclusion of people with developmental disabilities at Mid-Pen Housing’s affordable housing development planned in downtown San Mateo. At a Planning Commission meeting on April 28, 2020, the Planning Commission received about 20 public comments from advocates of people with developmental disabilities via email, Ecomments and phone calls. Commission Chair Mike Etheridge and Commissioner Ramiro Maldonado both asked the developer to include preference for people with developmental disabilities at this site. Vice Chair Ellen Mallory said she learned a lot about the needs of people with developmental disabilities from your stories.
However, the developer is now debating the requested preference of some apartments for people with developmental disabilities in this project, so we need to continue to educate San Mateo elected officials on the value of including apartments for people with developmental disabilities in their affordable housing plans.
The next steps for this project are a Planning Commission Hearing on July 14, 2020 and a City Council Hearing on August 17, 2020. If you live or work in the City of San Mateo and would like to support this project, please contact Kalisha Webster for more information. You can call Kalisha (650-660-7088) or send an email to kalisha@housingchoices.org
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Internet Essentials Seeks to Bridge the Digital Divide
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In light of the continuing impact of the COVID-19 crisis on low-income families, Comcast has extended its offer of two free months of Internet Essentials low-cost WiFi service as long as enrollment is approved before December 31, 2020. In addition, Comcast is allowing applicants with outstanding Comcast debt to qualify for the program until December 31, 2020.
For $9.95/month with no contract, no credit check, and no installation fee, Internet Essentials provides in-home WiFi at speeds of 25 Mbps downstream and 3 Mbps upstream. In addition, Comcast has expanded Internet Essentials customer access to its Wi-Fi Hot Spots during the COVID-19 crisis. Once enrolled in Internet Essentials, customers are allowed to purchase a computer for $149.99 plus tax.
Internet Essentials is limited to households who are not already Xfinity customers and who either live in subsidized housing or receive certain public benefits such as SSI, CalFresh, CalWorks, WIC, Head Start and certain other programs. Housing Choices is a community partner of Internet Essentials and can help with your application. Or you can apply from your mobile device here.
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Every ten years, people across the country and in California fill out the Census in order to have an accurate count of all people in the United States. The Census determines California’s federal funding for important community services and also determines whether our communities are fairly represented in California and Washington, D.C. We all need to be counted because the census will secure resources and shape leadership that will benefit our communities for the next ten years.
Despite COVID-19, the 2020 Census is happening now and you can participate either online (here), by phone or by mail. It only takes 10 minutes to complete, and the information you provide is completely confidential.
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Support Housing Choices with a Smile
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With Shelter in Place, many of us are doing more shopping on Amazon instead of at the mall. Did you know that Amazon will donate 0.5% of your spending to Housing Choices to support inclusive housing for people with developmental disabilities?
It’s easy to make this happen. When you shop on Amazon, type "https://smile.amazon.com" in your browser’s address bar. The first time you go to smile.amazon.com, you will be asked to select a charitable organization. Type "Housing Choices" in the search bar. Select Housing Choices Coalition in San Jose from the search results.
From now on, always start any Amazon shopping by going to smile.amazon.com instead of regular amazon.com. Consider bookmarking "smile.amazon.com" in your browser. Whenever you shop on Amazon Smile, you know that you are supporting Housing Choices when you should see "Supporting: Housing Choices Coalition for Persons with Developmental Disabilities" right beneath the search bar at the top of the page.
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To donate please use one of the donate buttons on this email or mail a check to Housing Choices:
6203 San Ignacio Avenue, Suite 108,
San Jose, CA 95119.
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With appreciation,
Ron Soto
Board Chair
Jan Stokley
Executive Director
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Housing Choices is a nonprofit corporation exempt from tax under Section 501(C)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Your gift is deductible as allowed by law. Our tax identification number is 77-0458221.
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