Folsom Oaks

Folsom Oaks Apartments is a 18-unit permanent supportive housing community owned and built by Hope Cooperative. The nonprofit provides support services to nearly 8,000 individuals in the greater Sacramento area experiencing behaviorial health issues and homelessness.

Folsom Oaks, which opened in 2011, "is our first built-from-scratch property," says Hope Cooperative CEO Erin Johansen. "Most of the folks we serve have spent time homeless, have not had their children for periods of time, and what's great here is they're in this lovely neighborhood in Folsom... Their kids go to great schools. They grow up here and break the cycle of poverty. They break the cycle of homelessness."

Charnelle Burdine opens the door to her three-bedroom flat. Formerly homeless, Charnelle moved into Folsom Oaks in November 2014 and has been reunited with her three sons. One is grown; two live with her.

Designed for families, the three-bedroom units have a washer and dryer in the apartment.

"This kind of house, it's stable housing, and I just feel like I'm a better person than I was before I got here," Charnelle says.

Charnelle is currently in school to become a counselor for relapse prevention and compulsive behavior. After receiving her certificate, she hopes to work with churches or community clinics.

"Permanent supportid housing like this property means you don't have to move. You are here and this is your home and your don't have to feel like you've got to start looking next year," Erin says. After spending a year in HUD-supported housing, residents qualify to tenant-based vouchers, which can be used at any community. But many residents like Charnelle and Ashley elect to stay.

Charnelle's next-door neighbor, Ashley Clark, originally invited her to church. Now, both women are active members and credit faith and family for helping to stabilize their lives.

"I've learned it's OK to be OK," says Ashley, who likes to work in the community garden. "It's OK to have what you need to live." Like most affordable housing communities, Folsom Oaks caps rent at 30 percent of residents' income, supplemented with HUD housing vouchers.

"You hear a lot about it's so expensive to build affordable housing," says Hope Cooperative CEO Erin Johansen. "Part of that cost people refer to is the subsidy, so it's not an actual construction cost... It includes everything — the services, the subsidy, the construction, all of it."