PROGRAMS & RESOURCES

Home Repair Resource Center offers a wide range of programs, services, and resources. Some of our programs have income guidelines, while others are open to all Cleveland Heights residents without income restriction. The following programs, services, and resources are currently available:

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR HOME REPAIRS

Our financial assistance programs help make borrowing for repairs more affordable, so homeowners can manage the maintenance needs of their property. Specific benefits include the Challenge Fund program, providing loan guarantees for homeowners whose circumstances prevent them from qualifying for conventional bank financing (no income limitations); and, for homeowners whose income falls within the low- and moderate-income (LMI) guidelines, grants that pay interest costs, match owner investment and/or provide incentive to undertake major projects, enabling these owners with limited resources to afford important repairs. Call 216-381-6100 for more information.

COUNSELING & FINANCIAL EDUCATION

Our counseling and financial education programs help residents learn to manage money, improve credit standing and make wise financial decisions. Home Repair Resource Center is a HUD-approved counseling agency. We provide confidential one-on-one counseling to help people with many kinds of financial issues: budget and finances, home purchase, questions about existing mortgages, refinancing, and reverse mortgages. We also help with foreclosure intervention. In addition, Home Repair Resource Center offers an interactive workshop series on financial empowerment that provides in-depth strategies in money management. The free classes are held on a regular basis throughout the year.

REPAIR EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Our repair education program enable homeowners to do repairs on a do-self or contracted basis. Project Repair offers "hands-on" classes that teach residents to do repairs correctly. (Take a Virtual Tour of our workshop where we offer classes.) Neighborhood Project Repair (NPR) is targeted to one specific neighborhood at a time around the city. NPR provides grants to LMI homeowners that, coupled with individual in-home consultations and repair instruction with HRRC’s Instructor, enable completion of both do-self and contracted home repairs to improve the neighborhood. A third program, "Home How-To for Women," currently provides personalized, in-depth instruction and encouragement to single women heads of house with limited incomes, so they gain confidence to undertake basic repairs that they would otherwise need to contract and are able to deal knowledgeably with contractors for larger projects. (To view a brief segment on Home How-To that was shown on "Ideas," a program produced by WVIZ, Cleveland's PBS station, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQu1FMPIAbk.) Call 216-381-9560 for information on these educational programs.

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

Our educational resources improve the quality of repair work in the community. All Cleveland Heights residents can use our Resource Library, located right in our office facility at 2520 Noble Road, which offers repair books, handouts, and videotapes, as well as contractor evaluations and suggested specifications for fourteen major repairs, to help homeowners obtain comparable estimates and get better quality work. Residents can also use our Library computer to research repair issues. (Take a Virtual Tour of our Library to see the kinds of materials available.) Library hours are 9 a.m. till noon, Monday through Friday; afternoon or evening times can be arranged by appointment. Residents can also attend an annual Home Remodeling Fair, generally held in mid-April, which is sponsored in cooperation with the City of Cleveland Heights. Call 216-381-6100 for information.

TOOL LOAN

Through our Tool Loan, LMI residents of Cleveland Heights can borrow tools for repairs. (A minimal fee, used to partially offset maintenance costs, is charged.) Call 216-381-9560 for information.

REHABILITATION PROJECTS

We carry out rehabilitation of distressed properties that constitute a blighting influence in the community. Home Repair Resource Center looks for vacant, foreclosed houses which need substantial work, and invests in a complete renovation, from roof to furnace. On a small scale, one project at a time, the rehab projects model what is possible to achieve in updated design and quality renovation of an older home. In this effort, Home Repair Resource Center has established new liaisons with local financial institutions, which have produced affordable purchase prices and no-cost lines of credit. Call 216-381-6100 for information.