Oregon Housing and Community Services awarded a Homeownership Language Access and Community Outreach and Engagement Grant in mid-July to Newberg Area Habitat for Humanity.
The funds outlined in the grant will be used to address the racial disparities and language barriers to homeownership in NAHFH’s service area (Newberg, Sherwood, Dundee, Dayton, and St. Paul) by increasing the visibility and assistance to our communities of color and underserved populations. In other words, the grant awarded will assist with facilitating language access to local residents with limited English proficiency or a language-related disability.
In 2018, the state of Oregon organized a taskforce to study the trends of homeownership and then compile data that outlined the barriers communities of color and underserved populations experienced when starting the homeownership process. During the 2020 legislative session, this taskforce set forth recommendations that included technical and financial assistance that needed to be developed for nonprofits and culturally specific organizations.