Housing Myth Busting Community Spotlight: Kris L.

Housing Myth Busting Community Spotlight: Kris L

Families CCAN is proud to be a recipient of the PA Developmental Disabilities Council’s  Housing Myth Busting grant.  The goal of our project is to break down some common myths, or falsehoods, about housing for adults with disabilities. 

Along with our partners from Self Advocates United as One (SAU1), we are sharing information about Independent Living for Adults with disabilities.  

As part of our project, we are sharing a series of Community Spotlight Interviews.  These interviews highlight the stories of individuals with disabilities who are living independently in the community.  

Our next Housing Myth Busting Community Spotlight Interviewee is Kris L.  After years of being a renter, Kris is now a proud homeowner in Venango county.  Kris grew up on a farm and loves animals and spending time with her children and grandchildren.  A researcher at heart, Kris uses her skills to help others find ways to live their own more independent lives.  

Kris was interviewed on Zoom by Housing Myth Busting team member and SAU1 Power Coach Gretchen Laudenslager. This interview  has been lightly edited for clarity and length, but the words are all Kris’s own. 

Thank you, Kris, for agreeing to this interview.   This information is so valuable to people with disabilities.  Can you tell us where you live?

I live in Western Pennsylvania. I am about halfway between Erie And Pittsburgh, in Venango County.

Do you live in a city,  small town,  a suburb, or a  rural area? 

I live in what I would consider a smaller town.  It's not small-small.   I live semi-country.  I don't consider it the ‘burbs either,  but semi-country.  I have trees on the right side of my house and in the back, but I have a main road in the front.  So kind of a little of both worlds.

Do you live in an apartment,  a townhouse, a duplex, or a house?

I live in a house.

What is one thing you know now that you wish you'd known before you moved into your house? 

How nice it would be without living in town. I grew up in the country.  We had a 30 acre farm, so there was nobody close to us.  But then I had kids and we moved to town because it's closer to their friends.  Being back out of town like I am now, it is so much nicer, even with the main road.  It's just quieter.

Who helped you plan on your move to your own place? 

I got tired of a landlord who did not fix my [previous] house.  And the conditions were very, very bad.  I had already known that there were loans available for low income people because at that point I had already lost my eyesight.  So I was on Social Security.   And Christine [From SAU1]  and I actually filled out the application and we went in and talked to them, got some questions answered, and then they submitted the application for me.

How are you paying for living in your own place?

I get Social Security-- Social Security disability.

Do you feel you are receiving enough support?

Yes. 

What are those supports?

I have a caregiver that comes in and helps me in-home for stuff that I can't do because of my eyes, like sorting laundry.  .  .  .   I can't lift the clothes baskets anymore-- the heavy clothes baskets-- so she helps me with that.  She helps me sweep the floor, dust-- get to stuff that I can't do.  And . . .  my son and son-in-law come mow the grass, because I have a big yard.  They come mow the grass and help take care of the outside stuff.

What are some steps you took before you moved into your home?

One of the main ones was deciding where to live, because I wanted to be close to my kids, because I knew they were going to be a big support.  That was one of the big ones.  The other one was making sure that the house I got was going to be not too much for me to take care of.   I didn't want a gigundo house-- something that was the right size.

What do you think has been most important for living on your own?

The ability to adapt. You have to be able to look at what needs to be done, and not get upset about what needs done-- just work through it one step at a time.

What is one thing that is wonderful about living in your own place?

[laughing] Christine asked me this question.  I  said,  “Being able to look at my children and say, “Go home.”  “Go home. Mom needs a break. Go home.””

You have to like your house, is the thing.  Don’t settle, because you’re going to be unhappy, and that’s not how you’re supposed to live.  You’re supposed to be joyful in your house, and at peace.   I like my house. It's calm.  It's peaceful.  I have a… 12 by 16 foot enclosed porch off my back door. . . .  It's so nice to go out there in a rainstorm, and just sit and listen and smell. . . .  the breeze come through.  It's amazing.  I mean, it gets me outside without getting me outside.  I like it.  

What’s the best thing about being a homeowner? 

The one thing is peace.   It's my home.   I'm not renting.   It's mine.

If I want to paint the walls pink, I can paint the walls pink.   I don't have to ask the landlord.    I'm the landlord, you know?   I get to make my own decisions and choices.

Do you have housemates?

I do not have housemates. And I'm very happy about that.  The only housemate in this house is my cat.  She is the only one that takes up space.

Do you feel included in your neighborhood?

Okay, that's a harder question, because where I live, the houses are kind of spread out.  I have really great neighbors on one side, who came over right after I moved in and introduced themselves and are there if I need them.   And the ones on the other side are kind of stand-offish.  They're not mean.  They just don't interact.  So I like where I am, and the people are okay.  They're nice,  but they're not a cohesive unit like some communities can be.

Do you have social spaces in your community that you use, or go to frequently? 

We have a couple of places that I have been, but I don't go regularly.  We do have a blind association that does crafts and that kind of stuff.   There are several local fire departments that my children's friends are part of, that have social gatherings and bingo and all that kind of stuff that are fun to go to.  Bingo is a challenge now but they just sit me with like eight little bingo cards in front of me and they do them all, and I get to sit there and laugh at them because they're trying to do their cards plus my cards.  It's kind of funny.  Yeah, there's things to do and it's fun.

Are there any social spaces that you’d like to have? 

There is not a lot of-- I don't know how to say this-- There's not a lot of inclusion. 

I'm involved with a lot of groups that work with disabilities. . . .    I got involved with that because of my nephew [who has disabilities].  But we don't have a lot [in the local community] to include those people.  And that's something that I wish we had, where we could get the kids involved-- the younger adults and even younger kids.  We don't have that stuff.

How do you get around your neighborhood?

My daughter, for the most part.  If I have a doctor's appointment or I need to go to the store, it's usually my daughter and my son or Christine or my other friend.  They kind of all pitch in when the others are busy.  .  .  .   I think we have Uber here, but it's not as common as it is in the big cities.  We do have taxis, but it's a joke. . . .  I'm more comfortable being with someone that I know, because I can't see.

Did you have to make any adaptations to your house to make it more accessible? 

Yeah, I do want to say something about that.  When I moved in, this house had the laundry room in the basement.  I did it for like two months--  I would carry the laundry up and down the basement stairs in a backpack, and do the laundry downstairs.  But it wasn't exactly safe.  I'm just stubborn.  So I found a grant that one of our local places does.  It's called Mustard Seed.

They came in and they moved my laundry upstairs for me. They put it in the small bedroom that's on the first floor, so that I can be able to  start the laundry.  If my daughter takes it and puts it in there, I can start the laundry myself.  So it gives me a little bit more independence than I would have.  A little more safe independence, I guess, is the best way to say that.

Also,  I had a gas stove when I moved in.  And gas stoves and blindness really don't go together. So the same people that moved the laundry room also put an electrical outlet in my kitchen so I could get an electric stove.

That’s great, Kris.

[laughing] Well, yeah, but I don't like to cook. No, I do like to cook.  I like to bake, but it's a lot safer for me if there's no open flame.  Without being able to see, you don't know where your towel is, or a napkin or a paper towel that got missed, so it's a lot safer for me [to have an electric stove].

Do you use any delivery services? 

Oh, yes. I do utilize Walmart.com and I have a Walmart membership.  So they deliver my groceries.  I can do my grocery shopping online.  It's amazing in the winter.

You just get online, order your food, and they'll deliver it, which is a lot safer, because where I live, we have a lot of snow and ice.  And this winter was bad.  I do think that more people should utilize them. Not that I'm promoting Walmart itself-- but the delivery services [are helpful].

Do you use any sort of tech to help you around your home?

Yes, I do have an Alexa. Oh, I have three Alexas, actually.  I have to have my Alexa, because honestly, it connects you in a way that you don't get when you're blind.

Like, I can get my news on my Alexa. I have three.  I have one in the bedroom, one in the living room, and one in the kitchen.  And. . .  If I choose to jam out, you can have them all play at the same time. So my house, no matter where you go in my house, there's loud music.   It's uplifting, if that makes sense.

I do have Alexa, and. . . .  I got an iPad from the Blind Association right after I lost my eyes.  And we had it in the car and my granddaughter dropped it.

Oh, no!

And it shattered.  It was winter and it hit the pavement.  It had a case on it and everything.  It just shattered.   So I got one from Tech Owl, but it's an Android.  

And they are not conducive to blind people. . . . You need two programs that have to work together correctly.  I have an iPhone, so I'm much more used to the Safari operating system.  And I need a new one. . . .   I need to get one. It's hard on my phone because I do have a bigger iPhone, but it's hard to use it when I'm doing stuff like this [Zoom interview with] the camera. . . . I did buy myself an Alexa TV.  It's just a regular TV, but it connects to Alexa so that I don't have to use a remote. It's voice controlled. . . .  It's amazing because  you don't have to mess with the remote that you can't see the buttons on.

I use [Alexa] for research a lot too. I do that all the time. I'll ask her questions. Like if I hear something on TV, I'll research. I’ll fact check.   I've used her to look up stuff. . . .  She can describe things.  Now, it has to be put in that way, so a lot of times it won't work.  It works sometimes.

I’ve used her for that, and used her for her to research prices. Like: “What's the cheapest place in a 20 mile radius of my zip code for glass replacement?” And she will give it to you. If it's online, she has access to it.

Also planning a vacation: “What stuff do I need to take with me? What's the weather going to be?” 

You mentioned a little bit about your transition from being a renter to a homeowner and the loan process.  What did your house search look like for you? 

Actually, my son bought his house about three years before I did. And they loved their realtor, so that's the realtor I called. . . .  He was amazing, because he had his own construction business before he started selling real estate.  So he was able to look at this house and say, for example, “Well. The electric was done [recently].” Everything was re-done in my house within 10 to 14 years before I bought it.  So all new electric, all new plumbing, new kitchen, they had put new windows and doors in . 

[The realtor]  was also really good about some stuff that wasn't done.  Because I went through USDA-- it's kind of like HUD-- where there are specifications that they have to follow. I needed the windowsill in the bathroom sealed. It needed a sealed silicone coating put on top so it wouldn't leak.  He came in and did that and a few other [projects]. And my  kids painted the porches, because they were peeling. So they had to paint those.  Those were all things that the USDA required for the loan.

And can you tell us what USDA stands for?

USDA is the United States Department of Agriculture.  And my county, Venango County, where I live, [is rural].  It’s  all USDA accessible.  If you use certain loans like USDA, you can't buy a house in a big city.  So you couldn't buy a house in Philly or Pittsburgh.  There's a population cutoff, and there's some other factors that matter, but my whole county is accessible for that program.

It’s so helpful to learn about all of the different loans that people can use to become homeowners. 

Yeah. Yeah. And it's always good to look at [your options].   A  lot of people automatically think they have to get a bank loan.  I would have qualified for a bank loan, but my interest rate would have been ridiculous.  And USDA has programs for people with low incomes.  So because my income level was low, but my credit score was high enough, I was able to get a low income loan. 

I [also] got subsidies, which is another part of their program, where if you fit into a criteria and you're at a certain income level, they'll pay part of your mortgage to lower your amount that you pay every month. And then they'll add that little bit that they were helping you with at the end of the loan. So I have a 30-year loan, but I can repay it in 33 years, so I have an extra three years to pay off the little bit of subsidy that I'm getting.  That keeps my payment low.

Actually, buying my house was way cheaper than renting. [In a]  federal loan or state loan, they cannot charge you more than 30% of your income.  Here, I'm paying roughly [$30 less monthly] than I was for my rental, and that includes taxes and insurance.

[Home ownership] is possible. And Pennsylvania is different than some states because we do have a lot more resources to keep people in their homes if you buy a house and it needs work. . . .  As far as replacing roofs and that kind of stuff, there are programs to help you with that, you know, which people need to know. Especially if someone in their family does not want them to live on their own. 

Kris, this information is so valuable to people with disabilities.   Thank you for talking with us today. 

You are most welcome.  You know I help wherever I can [laughing]  I'm like the blind fairy.   

This project is funded by the Pennsylvania Developmental Disabilities Council.  To learn more about the project and how you can get involved, please visit our Housing Myth Busting page.