In an effort to keep low-income families in homes they can afford, Hillsborough County and the nonprofit Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay (RTTB), recently turned over the keys to a brand-new home in Valrico. It will serve a single grandmother and her grandson. In just two weeks, Hillsborough County Affordable Housing Services and RTTB will turn over yet another home to a family in need.
“Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay’s goal is to preserve affordable housing for low-income homeowners,” said RTTB Board President Jerry Mason. “The County’s Reconstruction and Replacement Program contributes towards preservation for future generations. We are grateful to be selected as one of the nonprofits that deliver these services. We will continue supporting the Affordable Housing Department in all its plans and efforts to provide a safe and affordable place to live to low-income residents.”
Terri Hughes and her grandson are the 12th recipients of a new home provided through this program over the past two years. The home previously on her Valrico property had a caving roof, unsafe flooring and other major issues. It was impossible to rehabilitate, said Jose Garcia, executive director of RTTB. Typically, his group makes repairs for low-income families who cannot make them. But sometimes, the houses are just too derelict; he said.
“This is a program the county came up with and some others are adopting, too, to preserve affordable homeownership,” Garcia said. “You have houses right now in such disrepair they need to be torn down. It is the only place these families have. With the economy and investors, they offer a nice amount of money to buy these properties,” but then, the low-income family has no place to go. “Properties become unaffordable when they rebuild anywhere in the Tampa area.”
Providing homes for future generations
The idea with this program is to preserve the existing homes, or at least the property. This way people can keep a home and future generations can stay in the house free and clear.
“After 20 years, whatever happens, happens,” Garcia said. Participants get a 20-year lien placed on the mortgage-free house so they will keep it in the family, he explained.
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There are program requirements. The recipient of either repairs or replacements must fall in the 80th percentile of the median income for the county and must have a disability that keeps them from holding full-time employment. The homes they rebuild are the same size as the ones they replace.
Hughes applied for rehab. “When we got to the house, it was in such disrepair, we could not do anything,” Garcia said. “Trying to repair it could have opened up even more issues. It was wood frame and falling apart. We looked at our funding and saw that the money was there to rebuild the house.”
RTTB moved the family to a temporary location while construction took place. And in these times of supply chain issues, that can take six to seven months. “It takes six or seven months to get permits in place and six to seven months to build,” Garcia said. Getting windows takes six months. Trusses take six to eight months.”
More about the program
Funding for the program comes from the county, which, in this case, contributed $225,000. RTTB has relationships with several banks that give them a line of credit to pay for construction before the county reimburses it.
“We pay upfront,” Garcia said. “The banks with which we have relationships are becoming more creative and supportive of this process. We are very proud to have established that reputation.”
As for Hughes, who’s new 1,217 square-foot house was constructed on her property at 3821 Robinson Road in Valrico, she could not be more excited. “I have an indescribable feeling knowing I will not need to worry about the flooring coming loose or falling through it, and the roof no longer caving in on us,” she said. “I am eternally grateful to everyone involved, especially Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay and Hillsborough County Affordable Housing Services.”
Hillsborough County has prioritized addressing affordable housing issues, investing more than $54 million into the community in 2021, directly impacting more than 24,300 households. The county-funded programs and services focus on creating new affordable housing opportunities, training for residents to further their careers in order to afford home ownership, and infrastructure improvements that enhance the surrounding communities.
