Where:
Nogales, Arizona

Problem:
Shortage of affordable housing for low- and very low-income residents.

Solution:
RCAC worked with Chicanos Por La Causa to diversify affordable housing opportunities for low- and very low-income families.

Chicanos Por La Causa (CPLC) has a long history of providing low- and very low-income families with homeownership opportunities through its U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Section 523 Mutual Self-Help Housing Program. With RCAC’s technical assistance CPLC has assisted more than 260 families to construct their own homes.

Nogales is a colonia where 40 percent of the population is below the poverty level, and since the Great Recession, it has been difficult to find qualified applicants for the self-help program. To provide another option for affordable, decent housing CPLC took on a new challenge: assisting families to acquire and rehabilitate homes that were vacated during the housing crisis, using the USDA Mutual Self-Help Housing Program model. CPLC sees this new program as a necessary addition to its existing self-help housing program, providing much needed affordable housing services to community members who might not qualify for new housing construction loans.

During the past year, RCAC worked with CPLC to help it implement housing acquisition and rehabilitation services for families in Nogales. In November 2015, RCAC also provided technical assistance to prepare and submit an application to USDA for a new Section 523 grant. The $250,000 grant has been approved for a self-help project to construct 12 new homes and includes $45,000 to assist three low- and very low-income families to acquire and rehabilitate existing homes, beginning in 2016.

RCAC will continue to partner with CPLC to meet the housing needs of Nogales.