Addressing the Housing Shortage

COMMUNITY ESSENTIALS Addressing the Housing Shortage

CVRF’s Rural Housing Program

In a community needs assessment conducted in 2021, 42% of respondents living in the 20 rural communities we serve indicated that housing was the biggest problem they face today — above healthcare, education, and other issues. This speaks to challenges our communities face in both constructing new homes and financing them sustainably.

To solve this problem, CVRF has been working with community and organizational partners at the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Nunakauiak Yup’ik Corporation (NYC), Nunakauyak Traditional Council (NTC), and others. With the support of these partnerships, CVRF was able to develop a multi-phase housing process that includes site surveys, loan applications, construction and more. We are currently in the planning and construction phases for five new homes in Toksook Bay.

ENSURING HOMES ARE LEVEL IN WESTERN ALASKA

Houses built in the 1960s and 1970s have shifted over time and are now

in dire need of leveling to remain upright and functional. Homeowners in our communities do not have the resources to level their own homes — but CVRF staff does. We discovered that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) was offering residents funding via grants of up to $7,500 to level their homes or for home repairs. Once the funding was secured, CVRF staff helped residents purchase lumber and materials. Local M/Ws then used the materials to level the homes. So far, this pilot program has helped two residents in two communities complete necessary work on their homes.