Affordable Housing
The Foundation For the Challenged believes that in order to further social change for community inclusion individuals with developmental disabilities must have access to community-based living options. Living in a community home rather than institutions, developmental centers and skilled nursing facilities enables people with disabilities to be part of a neighborhood and community. To expand choice of living options, the Foundation executes a housing strategy where it leverages its financial resources and those received through state and federal affordable-housing grants to make more community–based homes available.
The housing strategy is executed through a housing venture with Scioto, a national housing service. Scioto’s housing service is specifically designed to meet the needs of people with disabilities. Since 1999, Scioto’s service has provided community-based homes for thousands of individuals with disabilities. The two organizations share a housing philosophy and venture to combine their abilities to make more housing available. Scioto provides the property management and affordable housing services for Foundation owned homes. As a nonprofit housing provider, the Foundation applies for national and local affordable-housing grant dollars that have been set aside for individuals with MR/DD. If awarded, such grants are used to reduce the occupants’ cost of living in the home. Housing grants may also be used to structurally modify homes to meet the physical, or aging needs of individuals with MR/DD.
The collaboration between the two organizations launched the Foundation’s ability to execute its housing strategy, which resulted in more doors of community-based homes being opened to individuals with mental retardation and developmental disabilities. The Foundation currently owns homes in eleven states housing hundreds of individuals.
Further expansion of the housing venture is planned in order to attain maximum social return.