Aug 16, 2024 | Economic Security & Outreach Blog, Housing, Mental Health
Our behavioral health colleagues at the MA Association of Mental Health (MAMH) received a two-year grant from the Massachusetts Community Health and Healthy Aging Funds that will enable the MA Hoarding Resource Network to focus on stabilizing housing and strengthening eviction prevention for people living with hoarding disorder. The initiative will involve people with lived experience and other stakeholders and professionals working in housing, aging, behavioral health, human services, public safety and code enforcement, and academic researchers. They will collaborate and craft strategies for broad environmental and systemic change, working towards nuanced community responses to assisting MA residents whose housing is at risk.
The MAMH has created a webpage with a blog about the project, and they welcome ideas and information about relevant resources that you might know about.
The MAMH project coordinator for this is Cassie Cramer, who is also the project director of the Older Adult Behavioral Health Network.
For our September 12 Outreach Zoom Meeting, Cassie will conduct a listening session, seeking insights from COA staff members about assisting older residents whose accumulated belongings pose a danger and could lead to eviction or their homes being deemed uninhabitable.
Jul 19, 2024 | Age & Dementia Friendly, Housing, News
The mic-drop moment at the July 11 Outreach meeting was when the presenter, Tim O’Reilly, who manages building projects for Backyard ADUs, shared that Massachusetts’ Home Modification Loan Program (HMLP) will provide 0% interest loans of up to $50K to eligible households for the building of accessory dwelling units.
Older or disabled adults who are interested in making changes to their homes to increase their long-term, at-home independence, may apply to the program.
Additionally, household members who are not disabled or over 60 can submit applications for home modifications or the creation of accessory dwelling units (free-standing or in the existing home) that will aid older adults or people with disabilities in their households.
Distinct from a home repair program, HMLP provides loans that support projects that may include: ramp and lifts, bathroom and kitchen adaptations, sensory integration spaces, fencing, and, as noted, accessory dwelling units. It’s all about increasing accessibility.
The HMLP is administered for the state by the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation (CEDAC), which in turn has delegated the processing of applications to regional agencies. For a list of regional provider agencies and eligibility and application information, see the program brochure.
More general information on the program can be found on CEDAC’s HMLP webpage.
2023 Income Limits
| Household size |
Maximum Annual Income |
| 1 |
$207,800 |
| 2 |
$237,600 |
| 3 |
$267,200 |
| 4 |
$296,800 |
| 5 |
$320,600 |
| 6 |
$344,400 |
| 7 |
$368,200 |
| 8 |
$391,800 |
Jul 5, 2024 | Housing, Mental Health, News, Resource finding
Some may remember that in March of this year the US Senate’s Special Committee on Aging distributed an RFI, seeking written testimony from people with lived experience and other stakeholders on the effects of hoarding. Committee members have finished their report, and responses from Massachusetts were strong. You can read or download the report here:
The Consequences of Clutter: How Hoarding Disorder Affects America’s Older Adults, First Responders, and their Communities
The report is long; one way to dip in is to start with the statements from people in Massachusetts—all of the pieces of the report are conveniently hyperlinked in the table of contents, and you can search for any word using ctrl/F on your keyboard. You will probably recognize some names of well-known hoarding disorder advocates and experts from MA. The statement written by members of the MA Hoarding Resource Network Steering Committee can be found on page B-106.
There are several statements from task forces around the country, and federal support for hoarding task forces is the top recommendation in the report:
SAMHSA and ACL should provide training, guidance, and technical assistance
regarding HD. Although HD is relevant to the mission of the Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Administration for
Community Living (ACL), neither agency identified programs specific to the con-
dition. SAMHSA and ACL should develop training, technical assistance, and other
guidance for social service providers, health care providers, and first responders
on how to respond to HD. Technical assistance should include tips and training for
professionals likely to encounter people with HD. Technical assistance should also
include guidance for communities on establishing a coordinated, evidence-based
response to HD – including best practices for forming and sustaining hoarding task
forces (page 43)
The statements from people living with hoarding disorder are particularly powerful and support the idea that with consistent, skilled assistance, people living with this disorder can make meaningful change in their lives.
Jun 7, 2024 | Economic Security & Outreach Blog, Housing
If you’re working with a client on a housing search or improving their housing stability because of a landlord conflict or other issue, staff members at Housing Consumer Education Centers might be able to assist. The regional centers are listed below; the best way to find the one for your community is to go to the HCEC website and search by the name of your municipality.
The organizations that house this program are not identical, and best points of entry will differ. Several of these organizations are the main local contact for RAFT (Residential Assistance for Families in Transition) applications, and several offer the services of Special Service Coordinators, who will provide finite case-management for clients.
Even though “Families” is in the RAFT title, individuals may also be eligible for emergency financial assistance. Some eligibility guidelines include:
- At risk of homelessness
- Income less than 50% of local Area Median Income (AMI)
- Income less than 60% of AMI and at risk of domestic violence
A quick RAFT eligibility tool can be found here.
List of HCECs in MA by Region:
Boston/Metro-Boston Region:
Metro Housing Boston
1411 Tremont Street , Boston, MA 02120-3401
Phone: (617) 425-6700 – For Emergency Rental and Mortgage Assistance
Phone: (617) 859-0400 – Metro Housing Boston Main Number
Phone: (800) 272-0990 – MA Only
Fax: (617) 532-7559
Email: resourceline@metrohousingboston.org
Berkshires:
Berkshire Housing Development Corporation & Berkshire County Regional Housing Authority
1 Fenn Street, 3rd floor, Pittsfield, MA 01201
Phone: (413) 499-1630 x168 or x167 – For Emergency Rental and Mortgage Assistance
Fax: (413) 469-9831
Email: HCECIntake@berkshirehousing.com
Berkshire Housing Development Corp: https://berkshirehousing.com/
Berkshire County Regional Housing Authority: https://bcrha.com/
Cape and Islands:
Housing Assistance Corporation
460 West Main Street, Hyannis, MA 02601
Phone: (508) 771-5400 – For Emergency Rental and Mortgage Assistance
Fax: (508) 775-7434
Email: hcec@haconcapecod.org
Central MA:
RCAP Solutions, Inc.
191 May Street, Worcester, MA 01602
Phone: (978) 630-6772/6771 – For Emergency Rental and Mortgage Assistance
Phone: (978) 630-6600 – Directory for All Services
Phone: (800) 488-1969 – Toll Free
Fax: (508) 365-6008 – Fax
Email: hcec@rcapsolutions.org
Metro-West:
South Middlesex Opportunity Council, Inc.
7 Bishop Street, Framingham, MA 01702
Phone: (508) 872-0765
Fax: (508) 620-2697
Email: hcec@smoc.org
Northeast MA:
Community Teamwork
17 Kirk Street, Lowell, MA 01852
Phone: (978) 459-0551 – For Emergency Rental and Mortgage Assistance
Phone: (800) 698-0551
Fax: (978) 459-0513
Email: CovidResponseCTI@commteam.org
Southeast MA:
NeighborWorks Housing Solutions
169 Summer Street, Kingston, MA 02364
Phone: (781) 422-4204 – For Emergency Rental and Mortgage Assistance
Phone: (800) 242-0957
Fax: (781) 585-7483
Email: HCEC@nhsmass.org
Western MA (Franklin, Hampshire, and Hampden Counties):
Way Finders
1780 Main Street, Springfield, MA 01103
Phone: (413) 233-1600 – For Emergency Rental and Mortgage Assistance
Phone: (800) 332-9667
Fax: (413) 731-8723
Email: info@wayfinders.org
May 17, 2024 | Economic Security & Outreach Blog, Housing, PACE
Photo of St. Therese Apartments in Everett by ROBERT UMENHOFER
Some PACE Centers in Massachusetts have special partnerships with housing entities, local housing authority- and privately owned properties that contain a variety of unit-styles, including rooms in congregate homes with shared amenities (such a kitchens, living rooms, and bathrooms).
Considerations for Combining PACE with Housing, a 2022 report developed by MassPACE, LeadingAge MA, the EOEA, and MassHealth, discusses the potential for meaningful partnerships and unit-set-aside agreements. Note: their report does not include information about Assisted Living units and their possible connections with PACE programs. The main intended audience for this report is housing authority administrative personnel. You can always forward it to your local housing authority.
If you are working with a client and/or their family members who is already a PACE enrollee or could be PACE-eligible and benefit from independent housing options, the best starting point is contacting the PACE program affiliated with housing, but staff involved with tenant selection at housing authorities should also be able to provide details on how they maintain a PACE waiting list. Housing authorities and management companies are still the gatekeepers and in charge of tenant screening and selection, but learning how to place a client on a waiting list for specific PACE-set-aside units will increase options for PACE enrollees.
The following is a selection of the properties and their partner PACE Centers listed in that report (2022):
May 10, 2024 | Economic Security & Outreach Blog, Housing
We all know that assisting clients with housing issues—seeking housing or stabilizing existing housing—is among the most demanding, stress-laden challenges we cope with. We also know that the landscape of affordable, low-income, and supportive housing options is complex. It seems that no matter how many resources we gather and training opportunities we take, there’s always more to learn, or a new scenario that defies our knowledge of what’s available to help.
For those who want to dig into this area of knowledge, MassHousing has an excellent series of trainings: Housing Stability Trainings. They provide support to housing advocates as well as property managers of rental units to increase their capacity to support tenants and cope in a fair and humane way with conflicts that arise.
Who and what is MassHousing? It is a quasi-public agency that works in partnership with the state, in particular the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, to finance the growth of affordable housing. It also supports first-time, low- and moderate-income home-buyers. An example of how they support the initiatives of the state is their administration of Neighborhood Stabilization Program grants.
MassHousing also maintains a searchable database of affordable rental housing.
Learning about what MassHousing does and its various training opportunities is a great way to increase your housing literacy and learn about bigger picture state initiatives to improve housing access.
