Community based developers around the country are successfully employing a variety of programs to build housing and assist working families and individuals, continues Faith. Out of Reach describes the needs of those workers. Section 8 makes the difference because it allows families to have safe and decent housing. Groups of ten families buy lots and work together to build each others homes. The program attracts young, upwardly mobile families who might not otherwise be able to afford a home of their own.
Homeowners receive assistance and perform some of the labor required to build or rehab their home.
Thorpe Family Residences in The Bronx, NY uses HUD s Homeless Assistance Programs and Section 8 rental assistance to provide permanent supportive housing for formerly homeless families. The program also provides child care, which assists mothers who are returning to school or training for jobs. Many of the 20 families in the program are escaping drugs or violent home situations. In two of the families, mothers were reunited with their children because of the availability of support services.