Today we’d like to introduce you to Freyja Harris.
Hi, Freyja. I’m so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, how can you bring our readers up to speed on your story? How did you get to where you are today?
My affordable housing preservation and homelessness prevention career began when I became a housing counselor for the Colorado Coalition for Homeless. I was starting my graduate program in urban planning and public administration when I took on the role of helping individuals and families to secure housing through various state and federal housing and supportive service programs. My professional and educational experiences during this time developed my awareness of the affordable housing crisis in the country and the inequitable policies and programs that were exacerbating the problem. I became a policy planner focused on target populations that tended to have fewer opportunities and resources to voice needs, wants, and concerns related to housing (such as persons with disabilities, migrant workers, low- and extremely low-income households, and fishermen). Upon completion of my dual master’s degree, I went on to work for state housing authorities, philanthropic foundations, academia, and other nonprofits, all prioritizing either community or economic development. Yet, I still had a desire to earn my juris doctor degree. So, I returned to school as a part-time night student while working full-time with three children. I am now a licensed attorney in Michigan. As a result of my expertise in the field of affordable housing, I was selected to serve as the executive director of the National Coalition for Home Repair, where I can work with home repair organizations across the country, including South Carolina, to enable more low-income homeowners to live in safe and healthy living conditions.
Would it have been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I enjoy a challenge if it will hone my skills or lead to better results than expected. Yet, I have met doubters who are unwilling to acknowledge a need for change or that their decisions have harmed households and communities. I cannot watch injustice unfold and not say or do something to at least bring attention to the issues. Despite being an optimist, I can’t deny that the fight against classism, bigotry, and other forms of prejudice does impact my emotional well-being at times. I often have to remind myself that those who came before me dealt with far worse, and I am obligated to make the path easier for others now and in the future.
Let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
The Coalition for Home Repair’s mission is to address the affordable housing crisis and homeownership gap by promoting and bolstering the skills of nonprofit organizations nationwide committed to providing free or low-cost home repair and rehabilitation services to low- and moderate-income households. These home repair nonprofits (HRNs) are in every state, city, and county but often are under the radar because they are focused on their mission rather than marketing themselves for profit. The HRNs range in size and capacity from hundreds of staff and thousands of volunteers to a staff of two people and dozens of volunteers. In both cases, volunteers are the heart of the operation to keep costs down. Nevertheless, the level of training and quality of service is comparable to for-profit construction firms. Yet, obtaining funding or no-cost skills training to stay current with best practices and certifications is challenging, especially for small and mid-size HRMs. This is why the Coalition for Home Repair exists. As a national nonprofit, we can pursue large amounts of public and private dollars that can be passed down to HRNs through certification training or grants. As staff and volunteers are trained, we collect data to ascertain the benefits to the homeowner’s and HRNs’ organizational capacity. Over time, we intend to build systems of home repair and rehabilitation access that give governments and communities options to keep low and moderate-income homeowners safely housed. Furthermore, we use the data to collaboratively advocate for policy and funding for home repairs that can preserve affordability and promote health and safety.
We aim to meet the home repair and modification needs of diverse homeowners, including households in rural and urban settings, veterans, older adults, and individuals with disabilities. We consider promoting the safety and quality of homes as a mechanism to sustain assets and address social determinants of health. Specifically, neighborhoods composed predominantly of people of color and rural communities of low-income households have historically been targets of speculators looking for reasons to take over property held by generations. When decisions are made about distributing financial resources to maintain homes, infrastructure, and amenities, these communities are often denied equitable access. The result is frequent deterioration and abandonment of homes, not by choice but due to limited financial options for upkeep. Instead of the public and private sector seeing communities that should be allowed to be restored, these homeowners are left vulnerable to those seeking to take advantage and displace households for assumed progress, community good, and monetary gain.
Our approach is to demonstrate through evidenced-based practices that home repair is essential to proactively reducing homelessness, protecting marginalized populations’ generational assets, and stabilizing low-income homeowners’ neighborhoods. Alternatively, family homes are lost to future generations, and low-income homeowners are displaced into unaffordable and unfamiliar rental markets. Despite home-buying and financial planning programs becoming more accessible, we will continue to lose ground in public health, homelessness prevention, and wealth-building for marginalized populations if we don’t begin to see solutions from multiple angles. Families with low income should be able to obtain homeownership, yet that is just one facet of the solution. The expense of maintaining both the mortgage and the physical structure is ongoing and needs adequate consideration by public or private financial institutions. We must put equal effort into keeping these homes in conditions that are livable, safe, and healthy.
CHR strives to reduce the effects of a lack of resources to support post-purchase and rehabilitation maintenance by bringing low-income homeowners’ stories and repair needs alongside the affordable housing needs of low-income renters, all of whom are at risk of homelessness without interventions. Specifically, we support and uplift the efforts of local, volunteer-supported home repair organizations that are mission-driven to enable all homeowners to keep their homes and remain safe and healthy. We must tackle the unaffordable housing crisis as a unified coalition of affordable housing advocates, funders, and social service providers to keep people housed regardless of income or whether they own or rent.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
The Coalition for Home Repair’s mission is to proactively combat homeowner discrimination, reduce the incidence of homelessness, and address the social determinants of health of marginalized communities in rural and urban settings. We recognize that creating access and sustainability of homeownership for historically marginalized populations has multiple phases beyond purchasing a house. After a person becomes a homeowner, there is ongoing maintenance and major repairs throughout the life of the property. This care is necessary to build and sustain equity for individual homeowners and an entire neighborhood. This can become increasingly difficult for homeowners who experience the barriers of bureaucracy and discrimination when attempting to—secure loans or grants for repairs. In the case of older adults seeking to age in place, there is the practice of incrementally or abruptly demolishing more senior communities of color to justify claiming valuable property for supposed public benefit. As a result, entire communities of homeowners are forced to forfeit their generational assets because they are without advocates and funding options to repair their homes to fight against market demands. Due to these realities, the Coalition for Home Repair advocates to improve equity of access to home repair, which requires evidence of the social, financial, and health benefits of safe homes for all.
Pricing:
- Home Repair Org Membership – $194 – $1286
- Nonprofit and Business Partners – 500- 1500
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.coalitionforhomerepair.org/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coalitionforhomerepair/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/57054207/admin/feed/posts/
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/in/freyja-harris-30104160/
