April 6. 2005
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Page A6
H ousing
• >
Standing Their Ground
Program keeps local
seniors in their homes
K atherine K ovacich
T he P ortland O bserver
Sleeping on a hard mattress in a
stale, unfamiliar environment of a
motel, or cuddling up to the fabric
o f a well-known pillow case in your
own bed surrounded by your pho
tographs, your view of the old tree
outside your window and your
hand-made blankets?
Most seniors would choose the
latter if they could, and Ecumenical
Ministries of Oregon is allowing
them to stay in the comforts of their
own home despite their growing
needs with age. When a caregiver
needs a room to stay in and a senior
needs someone to care for them,
the program matches the two to
gether.
Barbara Stone, program manager
for Shared Housing with Ecumeni
photo by K atherine K ovach h /T hf . P ortland O bserver cal Ministries of Oregon, said that
keeping one’s independence is one
Doris Haines is grateful to be able to stay in her home with the
of the most important aspects to a
assistance o f the Shared Housing program o f Ecumenical
senior. Instead of having to be trans»
by
ported to an assisted living or fos
tercare facility, they are able to feel
com fortable in the environment
they’ve lived in for years.
For Doris Haines, keeping her
home is extremely important, as her
deceased husband built it from the
ground up more than 30 years ago.
Beyond a roof over her head, the
home carries a lot o f sentimental
value.
Haines had a temporary stint in
a foster care home and declares,
“I’d never go back there. It’s like
being in jail.”
Through this program, she’s
been paired with a like-minded
woman who can help her with tasks
like vacuuming, getting in and out
of the shower and keeping track of
her medication, in addition to sim
ply keeping her company.
“1 want someone I can visit with,”
Haines said. “I’d get lonely here by
myself.”
By staying in her home, she's
able to keep up with work ing on her
yard and baking yummy treats like
bread and cinnamon rolls.
“ You can do what you want to,’
Haines said.
“It increases their interaction
with other people and gets them
out o f the house to go shopping
or go to the park instead of sitting
at home and w atching soap op
eras,” Stone said. “Just getting
som eone up and out to talk to
som eone th a t’s not on the phone
or on the T V .”
Financially, H aines and other
seniors are also spared the often
expensive costs o f living in a fa
cility, w hich can be even more
difficult for a senior depending
on savings, retirem ent or social
security.
“The cost o f staying in your own
home is dramatically lowerthan liv
ing in an assisted care facility. One
lady had spent $3,000 a month and
drained her savings that Medicare
didn’t cover,” Stone said. “A lot of
seniors will also have to start pay
ing someone to come in and clean
or cook for them, and if they’re low-
income, they can’t afford them so
they barter.”
Outside o f a home is the neigh
borhood at large that’s also affected
when a senior loses their place.
“T here’s an economic advan
tage to have them stay active in the
community in the local economy,”
Stone said. “But it’s also important
to retain a sense o f community. We
h av e a te n d e n c y to lose
intergenerational contact if we start
moving seniors out."
So far the program has been able
to keep 10 seniors and people with
disabilities in their original homes,
w ith a n o th e r six lo o k in g for
caregiver matches.
The organization has been made
possible since July 2004 by a grant
from the Portland Bureau of Hous
ing and Community Development.
The funds run through June 2005,
but without a replacement, the ser
vices may have to be eliminated.
“It’s really critically important
that we replace the funding,” Stone
said.
Seniors like Haines are depend
ing on it.
For more information on how to
donate monetary contributions or
volunteer, call 503-225-9924 or e-
mail housing@ emoregon.org.
Ministries o f Oregon.
(R H V a M M M N M
How To Budget Wisely for a Home Purchase
Tips for saving
toward a house
down payment
Buying a home is the biggest
investment most people will ever
make. Most people have dreamed
about owning a home of their own,
but are unsure how to get started.
For most first time homebuyers the
biggest struggle is how to budget
to save enough money for a down
payment.
The question for most is how do
I save for a home with my current
income and expenses?
Reviewing your monthly income
and expenses will help you to know
how much you can afford to spend
on a monthly mortgage payment. It
will also help you determine where
your extra money goes and if you
can trim any of your expenses to
start saving for your down pay
ment.
Meeting with a loan officer be
fore you are ready to purchase a
home can help you determine two
things; a savings goal for your
down payment, and how much of a
mortgage payment you can afford
DID YOU KNOW THAT PDC
OFFERS HOME PURCHASE,
REPAIR &
RENOVATION LOANS?
on a monthly basis.
Once you have a sav
ings goal in mind, it’s
time to start. The first
thing to do is to get
organized! This
is often the Z
hardest step
in the budget
ing process.
One common
piece o f ad
vice is to con
sid e r w hat
you pay for rent, and
what you qualify for in a
mortgage payment. Begin sav
ing the difference between the two.
This helps you reach your sav
ings goal, and reduces the
payment shock once you
buy your home.
If you have ac
c e ss to a c o m
puter, use it! There
are m any online
resources avail
a b le to h e lp
h o m e b u y e rs
~
th r o u g h
a ll
stages o f the budget
ing and buying process.
A dditionally, m any banks o f
fer online banking and bill payer
D ilA À Ü jJ C
services, as w ell as various finan
cial calculators that can help you
calculate expenses, track savings
and c a lc u la te m o rtg a g e p a y
m ents.
H o m eo w n ersh ip is p o ssib le .
Be p a tie n t, do your research
and use the re so u rc e s th a t are
a v a ila b le to y ou, and y o u ’ll be
on the road to b eco m in g a h o
m eow ner!
For more inform ation about
preparing for hom eow nership or
to get pre-approved for a m ort
gage,
you
can
c o n ta c t
HomeStreet Bank ’ s Affinity Lend
ing C enter at 503-227-3956.
Dreams Come W
-
, -».«y- ;s. «" “
; f °*s Own
L ng Home?
u
Your
PDC has been working with
Portland residents to revitalize
neighborhoods through home-
ownership and home renovation
for more than 25 years.
__________
Veil
J ,.c
www.oregprib«lus
PDC offers a range of loans to:
^
• Purchase & Renovate
sts - bond
• Refinance & Renovate
• Make essential or emergency home repairs
• Remove lead-based paint hazards from homes
PDC’s friendly and experienced staff are eager to provide assistance.
We offer the added value of PDC construction
specialists to assist and advise borrowers
throughout the entire renovation process.
Call PDC’s Neighborhood Housing
Program at 503.823.3400 or
e-mail nhp@pdc.us.You can also visit our
website www.pdc.us/housing.
(Spanish option available on the phone line.)
PDC
1-866-228-2734
www.rlverslderesorT.com
Y o u r P a r tn e r fo r H o m e P u rc h a s e , R e p a ir A R e n o v a tio n
222 N W Fifth Avenue
Portland, OR 97209
tel: 503.823 3200
fax 503.823.3368
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