HEALTHY HOMES IN YOUR COMMUNITY Kevin Lundy, Program Officer, Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro Brett Byerly, Executive Director, Greensboro Housing Coalition April Richard, Healthy Homes Team Manager, Greensboro Housing Coalition

GREENSBORO HOUSING COALITION Non profit of 25 years Advocates for safe and affordable housing for all, but with a special focus on helping people with low incomes and disabilities Service range provides for all from homeless to homeowners 3 Teams: Homelessness Prevention, Foreclosure Prevention, and Healthy Homes Address housing issues by not only providing referrals to other agencies, but with referrals within our agency– the teams work together and support the work of each other

KEY PARTNERS Kresge Foundation City of Greensboro  Neighborhood Development Department Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro Cone Health Community Housing Solutions University of North Carolina at Greensboro  Center for Housing and Community Studies (new 2015)  Evaluation of research and Data Mapping Partnership for Community Care North Carolina Housing Finance Agency North Carolina Housing Coalition National Center for Healthy Homes Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation of North Carolina Cottage Grove Inititave New Hope Community Development Mustard Seed Community Clinic Dept. of Housing and Urban Development Environmental Protection Agency

POLICY ACTIVITIES OF GHC: CODE ENFORCEMENT RUCO ended in 2011 due to legislative changes Post-RUCO task force formed  Created new code enforcement ordinance  Established fines for non-compliance  $200- initial  $75- daily fine for subsequent days  Total fines: nearly $1 million  Elon University Bus Tour- January 2015  Students requested information about collections of fines  +/- 7% collection rate  Proposed revisions to code enforcement ordinance- July 2015  Enacted- September 2015

IMPACT OF CODE ENFORCEMENT POLICY CHANGES

COMMUNITY EDUCATION ACTIVITIES OF GHC: BUS TOUR GHC started doing Healthy Homes Bus Tours in 2004  The purpose of the tours is to raise awareness of housing issues in our communities.  Stops on the tour have included:  Substandard houses and apartments where the owner has repeatedly not been in compliance with minimum housing standards (Greensboro Adopted IPMC)  Homes or apartments that have been remediated by our partners (i.e. Lead abatement, accessibility repairs, properties that were problematic and now are turning around).

HEALTHY HOMES TEAM OF GHC Umbrella team  Accept walk-ins, call-ins, and referrals from other teams Respond to tenant and homeowner complaints and concerns Assess homes for health and safety hazards while engaging tenants and homeowners in this process  Provide tenant and landlord education on rights and responsibilities Discuss solutions and/or next steps to resolve or alleviate housing concerns

PROGRAMS Housing Hotline Housing Quality Standard Inspections  Provide inspections of properties before our agency and partners provide financial assistance for moving expenses for the homeless or those living in hazardous conditions Advancing Safe and Healthy Homes Initiatives  Funded by The Kresge Foundation  Home visiting program  Asthma Demonstration Partnernship Healthy Homes, Healthy Communities Landlord Tenant Partnership

ASTHMA DEMONSTRATION PARTNERSHIP 40 households received interventions  Referred by Cone Health Intervention Model  2 person team to interview family and perform visual assessment  Assessed intervention needs based on home visit  Hired contractors to make repairs as needed  Provide trigger reduction materials or services  Green cleaning kit, allergen mattress and pillow covers, HEPA vacuums, HVAC filters, Integrated Pest Management  Conducted follow up visit to interview family and perform second visual assessment UNCG researcher completed data analysis Analysis has shown that modest repairs to the home and education can reduce the use of medicines, emergency medical care, and the burden on the family Fostered a collaborative relationship with the major hospital system in the area

HEALTHY COMMUNITIES, HEALTHY GREENSBORO EPA funded collaborative agreement to reduce asthma hospitalization rates Targets 4 zip codes , 27405, 27406, UNCG researcher produced heat maps to show high areas of need for program  Areas also coincide with clusters of substandard housing, older homes, and public housing Intervention Model- community engagement  300 home visits  Attending neighborhood and community meetings to discuss safe and healthy housing  Engaging partner agencies and educating them on safe and healthy housing

LANDLORD TENANT PARTNERSHIP Established by Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro Provides a funding source for  GHC to move people out of dangerous housing  Help low-income rental owners to make repairs to their units

LANDLORD TENANT PARTNERSHIP Established in December 2013, the Landlord-Tenant Partnership is a joint venture of the Greensboro Housing Coalition (GHC) and Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro (CFGG). The Landlord-Tenant Partnership Fund at CFGG supports the Landlord-Tenant Partnership program by making payments and deposits for rent and utilities for:  Tenants participating in the Partnership;  Tenants displaced by substandard housing; and  Tenants displaced by other reasons that lead to loss of housing.

LANDLORD-TENANT PARTNERSHIP ELIGIBILITY Tenants whose landlords participate in the Partnership are:  Eligible for past due rent IF they have verified reason for owing rent AND can pay rent in the future.  Eligible for supplemental rent for up to six months IF the new landlord has raised rents after rehabilitation AND tenant pays the pre-rehabilitation rent each month. Tenants who are displaced by substandard housing are:  Eligible for security deposit, and/or first month’s rent, and/or utility deposits, IF they can pay rent and utilities in the new rental unit. Process Notes: For approved assistance, CFGG processes disbursements to third parties directly (e.g. utility, landlord). Disbursements are not made to individuals who are clients of GHC. Appropriate documentation is required for each “case”.

THE IMPACT CFGG fundholders and community members have contributed nearly $150,000 to this fund Since its inception, the fund has enabled 108 households to secure safe, healthy, affordable housing. Support has been provided to tenants/families in the form of 235 payments to vendors/third parties totaling $108, On average, each household received approximately $960.

TYPICAL CASE Call-in client complaining of a long standing issue with landlord about repairs or pest management Initial Call Interview  Rental history  Repair request history  Landlord response  Rent payment delinquency  Schedule home visit, obtain property management contact information, and/or provide advice on following the protocols for repair requests Home Visit  Tenant provides assessor with a walk-through  Pictures are taken of issues  Mediation begins with property management Demographics Black couple or female, head of household with children  Immigrants and refugees Lower income, earning slightly above minimum wage Living in rental properties in Eastern Greensboro Rent: $ for 2 or more bedrooms

IMPORTANCE IN AREA Reducing the number of substandard homes in the area Increasing tenants’ and landlords’ knowledge of their rights and responsibilities Increasing the number of families that will leave homelessness and go into a safe, healthy, and sustainable housing Empowers our vulnerable population by equipping them with the skills they need to manage the safety of their home Raising the property values of homes in areas near substandard units which increases homeowner wealth and the tax base of the city.