Stock image

Increasing homeownership in the Latino community is the primary goal of a partnership between the Latino Community Association and First Story, a nonprofit that works to make homeownership more accessible.

First Story is one of the sponsors at the upcoming Latino Fest at Sahalee Park in Madras on Sept. 10. The event is the premier celebration of Latin American heritage in Central Oregon and is put on by the Latino Community Association, an organization that serves as the connecting point for the Latino immigrant community in the region.

The hope is that the annual event will increase engagement between the two organizations, taking the partnership a step further toward improving the lives of Latino families in Central Oregon.

Kisky Holwerda, First Story’s business development manager, said her organization has helped get a number of people into affordable homes, including members of the Latino community.

“We have a lot of homeowners who are first generation Americans, a lot of homeowners who are Latino,” Holwerda said. “So, it seemed like a natural fit to partner with an organization that is working so directly with that community.”

The relationship between the two organizations began in February when the Latino Community Association was presented with a $7,500 grant from First Story to support increased access to the association’s services and opportunities

The community association is currently focused on workforce education to help members of the Latino community increase their skills as a way to open the door to more opportunity, and a path toward homeownership, said Cynthia Jurgensen, development manager at the Latino Community Association.

Jurgensen said those skills include classes in English and computer use.

When it comes to housing, members of the immigrant Latino community face more barriers and challenges when trying to get into affordable homes compared to their neighbors. A chief concern is navigating an English speaking world, which is moving increasingly online, making it harder for those without computer skills to access higher wage jobs with consistent, and dependable schedules, Jurgensen said.

Jurgensen said the Latino Community Association offers a number of resources, and in addition to English and computer skills, also offers workforce navigation and help putting together resumes.

“Once we help them with these skills, then they can elevate their income, and then maybe they can become more successful and not have so many barriers,” Jurgensen said.

When it comes to getting more Latino families into homes, the collaboration is still in its early stages, but the plan is to eventually include such services among each organization’s list of resources.

“We haven’t partnered with them on getting Latinos into homes yet, but that’s our goal, to collaborate on that,” Jurgensen said.

Jurgensen said many Latino families are spending large portions of their income on food, housing, and more recently, on higher fuel prices.

“I’m not sure they think they have an opportunity to get into a home,” Jurgensen said, ”because they are trying to make ends meet.” A report published by the Latino Community Association in 2020 showed Latino households in Central Oregon have a significantly higher degree of housing need and severe housing need compared to white households.

Housing need, and severe housing need are defined in the report as households that pay more than 30% and 50% of their incomes. The report showed that out of 4,942 Latino households surveyed, around 46% have housing needs, while 30% surveyed had severe housing needs.