Homes for Life Foundation, a nonprofit housing and supportive services agency, recently closed on $2.8 million in construction financing provided by Enterprise Community Loan Fund to renovate two group home facilities in Los Angeles County. Buchanan House and Wilson House will have a total of 13 bedrooms serving residents with mental disabilities and individuals needing rehabilitative services and around-the-clock care and supervision.
Built in 1906, Buchanan House is a two-story, wood-framed house in the city of Los Angeles with six bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, dining room, kitchen, laundry room, and a single-story carport/storage building. This semi-independent group home offers rooms to individuals with mental disabilities. Each room in the house counts as one affordable unit, and residents pay 30% of their adjusted gross income for rent.
Buchanan House renovation will include a seismic retrofit, roof replacement, kitchen remodel, updates for ADA compliance and accessibility, replacement of fencing and retaining walls, replacement of carpet and vinyl flooring, new common area furniture, and interior and exterior painting.
Wilson House, a two-story, wood-framed house in Pasadena, was built in 1905. It has six bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, a dining area, a kitchen, and a stand-alone carport with two covered parking spots. Wilson House is an eight-bed, state-licensed residential home serving residents who require rehabilitative services and 24/7 care and supervision. Some residents were formerly unhoused and referred to Homes for Life through the Los Angeles Continuum of Care program.
Wilson House renovation will include a seismic retrofit, conversion of the existing carport into a one-bedroom/one-bath accessory dwelling unit with a kitchenette that is fully ADA mobility accessible, updates to the first-floor bedrooms and bathroom for ADA accessibility, replacement of flooring, and new interior painting throughout the house.
Both Buchanan House and Wilson House received awards in April 2023 from the State of California’s Department of Housing and Community Development’s (HCD) Portfolio Reinvestment Program (PRP). Buchanan House received an award for $1.6 million, comprised of a $1.5 million rehab loan and a $140,000 operating reserve forgivable loan. Wilson House received an award for $1.53 million, which was comprised of a $1.5 million rehab loan and a $35,000 operating reserve forgivable loan.
PRP was established in 2021 with $332.5 million in funding for housing with expired HCD affordability restrictions that have not been removed from the development, have HCD affordability restrictions that are expiring on or before December 31, 2032, or have been foreclosed on by HCD or another public lender. PRP aims to preserve existing HCD-funded affordable housing projects by extending affordability agreements, extending loan maturity dates, providing new low-interest long-term loans for rehabilitation, and providing forgivable loans to capitalize on short-term operating subsidies.
While PRP is meant to be used in conjunction with property renovations, HCD’s funding does not enter the project until construction is complete and the property reaches 90% occupancy. The Enterprise Community Loan Fund construction loans will bridge the HCD funds.