Current Opportunities
The 2010 census is upon us and there are many questions that people may have about filling out forms, privacy issues, and the importance of the census. Data used from the census will be used to apportion House seats, reshape Congressional districts, and determine how about $400-billion of federal funds will be distributed each year. Forms will be mailed to households but the census cannot move forward unless they are returned. Click here to learn more.
The A Brush With Kindness program is a neighborhood outreach program within Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity that refurbishes homes of low-income residents, especially those experiencing challenging circumstances such as single parent families, advanced age, disability or poor health. This program helps homeowners remain in safe and affordable homes.
Whether you are new to renting or have been a renter for years, reviewing these free tips will help to remind renters of their rights.
Housing News
An article by the Center for Housing Policy takes a look at housing costs compared to income levels in U.S. households. It found that Minnesota was one of only 13 states where the proportion of severly cost burdened households (those paying more than half of their income on housing) increased from 2005 to 2008. The article examines reasons for the increase and looks at working households where members work more than 20 hours per week.
Research by Children’s HealthWatch shows that it is not only government food programs that will help end child hunger in the U.S., but that subsidized housing is also a major component. When families have a secure housing subsidy, more of their income is available to provide for other resources such as food.
Visit the Home Line Policy blog for more on this powerful story of two Twin Cities renters who brought their stories to the Minnesota state legislature. "Peggy Larkin and Melissa Lenart, two tenants trying to maintain safe, decent, affordable housing, did an amazing job describing struggles they’ve had with their landlords. They made an amazing case for why State law should have been stronger to help them. Peggy had been falsely accused of not paying her rent several times; a simple receipt for rent paid would have resolved the matter. Her neighbors had lived in homes with furnaces that did not work for weeks; a number of provisions in the Tenant Bill of Rights would have helped them. And Melissa and her family were living with no water and backed-up sewage for nearly a month; again, several portions of the Minnesota Tenant Bill of Rights would have helped her out...."
Bastions of the middle class, Twin Cities suburbs are seeing financial pain spreading quietly among their residents. They now have more poor people than the core cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Archived News