Housing hunt an uphill battle

Finding affordable housing is hard enough. But factor in accessibility for people who have disabilities, and the search gets even tougher.

The hourly wage necessary to afford a two-bedroom rental in Charleston County is $15.83 — or nearly three minimum wage jobs, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition. And that's assuming you get a fair market value rent of $823 and don't exceed the recommended 30 percent of your income.

Now try to find an apartment in that price range with the following features: wide doors, a roll-in shower and a kitchen sink with clearance for a wheelchair.

Agnes Brown, 90, waited about four months to move into Lincolnville Garden Apartments. That's a short time compared with the two or three years people waited a few years ago, said Montez Martin, executive director of the Charleston County Housing and Redevelopment Authority.

"The fastest-growing population in the tri-county area is seniors," Martin said. "Seniors, by definition, contain a lot of disabilities."

Brown lived with her daughter's family before moving into her 750-square-foot unit. After five hip operations, she uses an electric scooter to get around.

"Independence is very important to me," she said. Born and raised on America Street in Charleston, Brown has worked as a cook and a nursing aide.

"I know quite a few people who would like to get in here," Brown said. "You do what you can and try not to depend on people unnecessarily."

About one in five Americans have some level of disability, and more than 800,000 in South Carolina have a disability, said Ernie Tate, vice chairman of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society's government relations committee. The unemployment rate for working-age adults with a disability is 70 percent.

"It's not just accessibility issues. They can't afford a home either," Tate said. "If people would just understand what an issue this is. Forty-two percent of us can't afford a two-bedroom apartment. That's pretty scary."

Resources exist, but they are disparate and not connected. Carol Page O'Day is a speech language pathologist with the S.C. Assistive Technology Program, a federally funded program that allows people to test assistive devices before purchasing them.

The Columbia-based program also has a listserv, or e-mail list, where people can share resources, but when O'Day recently tried to

help a person locate funding for a customized ceiling track system to help with lifting, she was left flummoxed.

Normally, O'Day helps people with Medicare and Medicaid, but there's no funding for customized equipment, she said.

"I walked away from the whole system of tracking down agencies without finding one place where all the agencies meet," she said. "How do you make sure people are not falling through the cracks?"

Pushing for change

Jed Elmaleh's assistive devices start at his front door, which has a lever handle and a push-button lock. Elmaleh is a physical therapist who has multiple sclerosis. He knows what technology can mean for someone with a disability. From remote control blinds to wrist wrests for his computer, Elmaleh takes his gear seriously.

"They make my life a little easier," he said.

The Mount Pleasant resident is an activist volunteer for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and works the phones in South Carolina to bring interest to a critical mass for change.

There are an estimated 250,000 Americans with disabilities living in nursing homes who could live independently but for the availability of affordable, accessible housing, Elmaleh said. It costs about $6,000 a month, or $72,000 a year to house someone in a nursing home.

"The figures are staggering," he said.

Elmaleh calls key people throughout the state with the goal of bringing a group of stakeholders together to put a plan in action. "We have to do some infrastructure changes," he said.

Georgia's Home Access Program offers grant money for people to modify their homes and could be a model for South Carolina, Elmaleh said.

The program pools money from state-allocated funds and nonprofits and makes grants to homeowners in allotments of about $10,000.

"It's really hard to find the right resources," said Ron Pounds, disability housing coordinator for the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the agency that oversees the program. "We have been working with advocates and representatives across the state."

Earlier this year, the program dispensed $300,000 in grants to homeowners in a period of one month. That signifies a potential for a $3 million program, he said. Administrators throughout Georgia work to match people with resources they need to keep them in their homes and living independently.

The South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority partnered with the state department responsible for administering Medicaid to modify the homes of 558 older and disabled people. But that partnership expired, said Clayton Ingram, director of marketing and communications for the authority.

The state authority still has a Housing Trust Fund, to which nonprofits may apply, including those that specialize in rehabilitating homes, he said. That money is distributed quarterly and is based on deed recording fees, which can vary depending on home sales.

Creative funding

Charles Hammerman, president and chief executive officer of The Disability Opportunity Fund, based in Albertson, N.Y., is trying to get the private sector involved.

"There is a disability market, a national market, that doesn't discriminate by socio-economic status, gender or race," he said. Hammerman, a former U.S. attorney in New York, worked as a senior member of Private Executive Services, a division of Merrill Lynch's Global Private Client Group.

Hammerman would like to bring the world of disability together with Community Development Financial Institutions, or CDFIs, a $25 billion industry. These financial entities are specialized institutions that provide services similar to banks to traditionally underserved markets.

South Carolina has only six CDFIs, while neighboring Georgia has more than twice that number. New York boasts 75 institutions.

CDFIs often deal with affordable housing, Hammerman said, but weren't always mindful of accessibility. "When you do 100 units, why not set aside rooms for people with disabilities?" he said.

The Disability Opportunity Fund acts as a gap financer that uses the CDFI system. If someone reaches out to the fund with a viable idea, the fund looks for a CDFI local to the project and brings them to the table.

Hammerman's motivation wells from his personal life. He is the father of an 18-year-old daughter with a mild form of cerebral palsy who started college this fall.

"There's a whole generation of people saying, 'There's got to be a better way.' People with disabilities do not only want to live with other people with disabilities," he said.

Elmaleh is preaching the gospel of CDFIs to whomever will listen. At his urging, the Affordable Housing Coalition of S.C. will consider promoting the entities at its November meeting.

"More CDFIs equals more cash flow," Elamleh said. "It opens channels for existing bundles of cash."

Elmaleh knows he has an uphill battle, especially in today's economic climate. "It's going to be a very long, arduous task," he said.

Reach Jill Coley at 937-5719 or jcoley@postandcourier.com.