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OP-ED: There’s Hope for Housing: Counselors Can Help You Afford a New Home – Or Keep the One You Have

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s 2020-2021 state budget provides $300 million to the California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) to help families all over the state. Some of you have been looking hard for a home but to no avail and others have been getting up and working hard every day but you still find yourself struggling with unstable or unaffordable housing.

Published

2 years ago

May 11, 2022

Oakland Post

LaNeice Jones

LaNiece Jones, Special to the Post News Group

California’s severe housing shortage — and the lack of available housing the average family can afford – did not begin with the COVID-19 pandemic.

But financial hardships Californians now face resulting from the global health crisis has only made our housing problems worse.

The average cost of a home in California is more than 80% higher than the rest of the country. And renters in our state pay, on average, 50% more each month than people in other states, according to the California Legislative Analyst’s office.

It would take building about 180,000 new homes a year in California to meet the state’s housing goal, but developers construct less than half of that number, around 70,000 units, annually.

Our housing problem seems unsolvable, but there is hope.

A new state program is assisting Californians facing eviction or foreclosure — or those who don’t stand a chance of affording a home that’s close to their jobs or family.

According to CalHFA, $50 million of the funds will support its housing counseling program, which is a critical aspect of the home-buying process.

More than 75 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-approved counseling agencies all over the state will provide free and confidential advice to Californians who are facing eviction or looking for a home.

Information about home buying, reverse mortgages, mortgage delinquency, rental housing, and homelessness programs are all offered by the counseling agencies.

So far, over 17,400 households have been served through the program.

1n 2012, a group of faith-leaders filed a lawsuit against the country’s largest home lenders to protect homebuyers and homeowners from exploitation in the housing market.

That case resulted in the National Mortgage Settlement (NMS) agreement, which allows certified counselors from the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) help families secure and maintain quality and affordable housing.

That help could not come at a more critical time in our state. I encourage you to tap into this rare opportunity to get professional housing advice that will not cost you a cent.

Good, affordable housing is an integral part of the American dream. It’s central to our idea of who we are as a nation and how we view ourselves as citizens.

Your home is your health. It is your safety.

For additional information, reach out to the BWOPA Oakland/Berkeley Chapter, email staff@bwopa.org or call CalHFA at (877) 922-5432.

About the Author: LaNiece Jones, volunteer statewide executive director of Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) since 2000; she is a proud product of East Oakland, public schools and serves as executive director for Peralta Colleges Foundation raising much needed scholarship funds and resources for under-resourced community college students.

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Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

Published

15 hours ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

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Oakland Schools Honor Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice. His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.

Published

1 day ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

Fred Korematsu. Courtesy of OUSD.

By Post Staff

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice.

His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.
One OUSD school is named in his honor: Fred T. Korematsu Discovery Academy (KDA) elementary in East Oakland.

Several years ago, founding KDA Principal Charles Wilson, in a video interview with anti-hate organization “Not In Our Town,” said, “We chose the name Fred Korematsu because we really felt like the attributes that he showed in his work are things that the children need to learn … that common people can stand up and make differences in a large number of people’s lives.”

Fred Korematsu was born in Oakland on Jan. 30, 1919. His parents ran a floral nursery business, and his upbringing in Oakland shaped his worldview. His belief in the importance of standing up for your rights and the rights of others, regardless of race or background, was the foundation for his activism against racial prejudice and for the rights of Japanese Americans during World War II.

At the start of the war, Korematsu was turned away from enlisting in the National Guard and the Coast Guard because of his race. He trained as a welder, working at the docks in Oakland, but was fired after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Fear and prejudice led to federal Executive Order 9066, which forced more than 120,000 Japanese Americans out of their homes and neighborhoods and into remote internment camps.

The 23-year-old Korematsu resisted the order. He underwent cosmetic surgery and assumed a false identity, choosing freedom over unjust imprisonment. His later arrest and conviction sparked a legal battle that would challenge the foundation of civil liberties in America.

Korematsu’s fight culminated in the Supreme Court’s initial ruling against him in 1944. He spent years in a Utah internment camp with his family, followed by time living in Salt Lake City where he was dogged by racism.

In 1976, President Gerald Ford overturned Executive Order 9066. Seven years later, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco vacated Korematsu’s conviction. He said in court, “I would like to see the government admit that they were wrong and do something about it so this will never happen again to any American citizen of any race, creed, or color.”

Korematsu’s dedication and determination established him as a national icon of civil rights and social justice. He advocated for justice with Rosa Parks. In 1998, President Bill Clinton gave him the Presidential Medal of Freedom saying, “In the long history of our country’s constant search for justice, some names of ordinary citizens stand for millions of souls … To that distinguished list, today we add the name of Fred Korematsu.”

After Sept. 11, 2001, Korematsu spoke out against hatred and discrimination, saying what happened to Japanese Americans should not happen to people of Middle Eastern descent.
Korematsu’s roots in Oakland and his education in OUSD are a source of great pride for the city, according to the school district. His most famous quote, which is on the Korematsu elementary school mural, is as relevant now as ever, “If you have the feeling that something is wrong, don’t be afraid to speak up.”

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WOMEN IMPACTING THE CHURCH AND COMMUNITY

Published

2 days ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Juanita Matthews

Sister Juanita Matthews

55 Years with Oakland Public School District

The Teacher, Mother, Community Outreach Champion, And Child of God

Juanita Matthews, better known as “Sister Teacher,” is a walking Bible scholar. She moved to California from the great state of Arkansas in 1971. Sister Teacher has a passion for teaching. She has been a member of Bible Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church since 1971. She followed her passion for teaching, and in 1977 became the lead teacher for Adult Class #6. Her motto still today is “Once My Student, Always My Student”.

Beyond her remarkable love for the Lord, Sister Teacher has showcased her love for teaching by working for the Oakland Unified School District for 55 years, all but four of those years spent at Emerson Elementary and Child Development School. She truly cares about her students, making sure they have the tools/supplies needed to learn either at OUSD or Bible Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church.

She’s also had a “Clothes Closet Ministry” for 51 years, making sure her students have sufficient clothing for school. The Clothes Closet Ministry extends past her students, she has been clothing the community for over 50 years as well. She loves the Lord and is a servant on a mission. She is a loving mother to two beautiful children, Sandra and Andre. This is the impact this woman of God has on her church and the community.