Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, April 22, 1990 TAG: 9004200511
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: LINDA DENNARD CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: GILES LENGTH: Medium
Pembroke Management handles for Giles County the state and federal rental assistance program, aimed at finding affordable housing for elderly, disabled, handicapped and low-income people.
Rader factors in a client's age, physical condition, income and living expenses and comes up with the subsidy the program will pay. Sometimes it is 90 percent of the rent.
The program is serving 55 families or about 170 people, the maximum that Rader is funded for; there are 150 families - about 350 people - on the waiting list.
The project is paid through the Virginia Housing Development Authority, which in turn is funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Families on the waiting list and ones now in the program have met income requirements. A family of two, for example, may not have income over $12,350 annually to qualify.
The program doesn't speak specifically to the homeless unless they have been involuntarily removed from homes by a fire or flood, for example. Eviction doesn't necessarily qualify a person for rent assistance.
What families do while they wait is unclear. Rader knows they are calling her frequently to see if their position has changed. But, she says, turnover on the list is slow. People in the program tend to stay in.
In addition, people must wait for the kind of housing they qualify for - one-, two- or three-bedroom. There is a shortage of funds for two- and three-bed homes needed most by families, Radar said.
The Giles economy adds to the problem of turnover, she says. A lack of jobs keeps the unemployment rate at about 10 percent and makes it difficult for people to earn enough to get off the program.
Rader faces another dilemma when someone does move up on the list. Property must meet federal standards before the landlord is eligible to receive a payment from the program, but, she said, landlords aren't always willing to spend the money to bring housing up to standards.
Another of Rader's responsibilities is to conduct property inspections.
Many on the waiting list live in substandard housing, Rader says, though exact figures aren't available. She says a lack of plumbing and safe water often are problems. Pest infestation is another. Windows are often covered with paper or cloth or there is no central heating.
"It's very depressing sometimes," Rader says. "You want to do all you can for them, but sometimes your hands are just tied." Rader says she's as much a counselor to people who call for help as she is a bureaucrat with a mass of paperwork.
"In some situations you know the people could do better if they just tried," Rader said. "But in many cases there's just no light at the end of the tunnel."
Many on the waiting list are disabled. Many lack transportation, she said. The families live throughout the county and are not concentrated in any one town.
Rader works closely with Social Services and churches to place people who do not qualify for aid.
The county has appealed to the Virginia Housing Development Authority to increase its allocations to meet the added demand, but Rader said she's still unsure of the chance that additional funding is coming.
Scot Hoffman contributed to this article.
by CNB