Project Recommendation #4
Project Recommendation #4
The Area Agency on Aging will support the expansion and availability of subsidized home repairs and accessibility modifications for older adult and disabled homeowners across the county.
California's 5 Bold Goals: Housing for All Ages & Stages; Affording Aging
AARP's 8 Domains of Livability: Housing
In addition to supporting older adults and people with disabilities with day-to-day tasks like grocery shopping and yard maintenance, communities can also help ease housing cost burdens and help keep residents in their existing homes by offering low-cost or free home repairs and accessibility modifications. Subsidized home repairs and accessibility modifications are available to help lower income homeowners, especially seniors and those with disabilities, make their homes safer, more accessible, and more energy-efficient. These home improvements can help reduce the risk of falling, improve general safety, increase accessibility, and improve a person’s functional abilities in their home. This will enable older adults and people with disabilities to remain in their homes, that is, to “age in place,” rather than move to nursing homes or other assisted care facilities.
Accessibility modifications often include wheelchair ramps, which can be an essential tool for entering the home and/or navigating different levels; bathroom modifications, including grab bars, widened doorways, and accessible showers; kitchen modifications, such as lowering cabinets, installing pull-out shelves, and adjusting counter heights; widening doorways to accommodate wheelchairs and other assistive devices; improving or upgrading lighting fixtures to enhance safety and accessibility; and replacing old appliances and fixtures with energy-efficient alternatives.
There are existing subsidized home repair and accessibility modification programs in Merced County already (see more info in the Assets section on the next page). They can be scaled and/or promoted to serve more households, especially rural homeowners in communities without many affordable senior or accessible housing options.
Merced County’s existing Housing Rehabilitation Program is funded by the California Department of Housing and Community Development. The program provides financing to repair income eligible and owner occupied homes in need of essential health and/or safety repairs. Self-Help Enterprises contracts with the County to determine program eligibility and to perform the repairs.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers the Section 504 Home Repair Program, which provides loans to very-low-income rural homeowners to repair, improve, or modernize their homes, or provides grants to elderly, very-low-income rural homeowners to remove health and safety hazards. All home locations outside of Merced and Los Banos are eligible under this program.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) also has a 203(k) Rehabilitation Mortgage Insurance Program. Section 203(k) insures mortgages covering the purchase or refinancing and rehabilitation of a home that is at least a year old. A portion of the loan proceeds are used to pay the seller, or, if a refinance, to pay off the existing mortgage, and the remaining funds are placed in an escrow account and released when the rehabilitation is completed.
Collaborating with existing programs in Merced County, as well as loan and grant programs at the state and federal level, Merced County Area Agency on Aging staff can serve more rural households through subsidized home repair and accessibility modification programs within twenty-four (24) months of the adoption of this Action Plan by the County Board of Supervisors. With new funding streams and depending on the level of support of community partners, this timeline estimate could be expedited.
By June 30, 2030, Merced County will complete at least ____ home repairs, accessibility modifications, and/or energy efficiency upgrades for older adult or disabled homeowners (or their guardians), a 25% annual increase over the fiscal year 2023-24 baseline.
As part of an annual survey of older adults, Merced County will assess its success promoting subsidized home repairs and accessibility modifications. In comparison to a baseline rating determined at the start of fiscal year 2025-26, 40% more older adults will be aware of the availability of existing subsidized home repair and accessibility modification programs by June 30, 2030.
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