For nearly thirty years, Abode Services has been providing emergency and permanent housing in Alameda, Santa Clara, San Mateo, and Santa Cruz counties. The organization secures permanent homes for homeless individuals and families. Serving nearly 5,000 clients annually, Abode Services works with landlords, manages governmental rental assistance programs, builds new housing stock, and provides case management services to ensure people maintain housing. To date, the organization has developed 1,500 units of affordable housing.
In the 1990s Abode primarily worked to find permanent housing in the real estate market for clients staying in the organization’s temporary shelter in Fremont. As rents increased, it became apparent that affordable and supportive housing options were in a short supply for the organization’s homeless and low-income clients. In response, Abode established a strategic partnership with Allied Housing, a housing developer with more than 25 years of experience in housing-focused solutions to people experiencing homelessness.
Though Abode has engaged in building their own affordable housing, the organization also attempts to purchase properties that house current clients, usually with Abode listed as master tenant.
Earlier this year, Community Vision provided Allied and Abode with a loan for the acquisition and preservation of affordable housing in East Oakland. Community Vision provided a $3,303,000 loan in participation with Partners for the Common Good towards the purchase of a 24-unit, three-story apartment building on International Boulevard in Oakland’s Fruitvale neighborhood. Currently a quarter of the building’s residents are Abode clients. Market-rate tenants living in the building will not be relocated, but as market-rate tenants move out, those units will be leased to low-income individuals.
“Our goal is to lease as many units as possible to individuals who are either homeless or at risk of homelessness,” said Jon White, director of professional property and assets for Abode Services and Allied Housing.
In addition to this, Community Vision provided the organizations with a $5,280,000 acquisition loan through the Bay Area Transit-Oriented Affordable Housing Fund to purchase 1.36-acres of vacant land in Fremont to be developed into 68 units of affordable, supportive housing. This project also provides housing to homeless people and other low-income residents.
“I’ve worked with Abode and Allied for many years now,” said Toby Lieberman, Community Vision’s senior manager, loan underwriting. “These organizations are filling a critical need for affordable housing in our communities and we at Community Vision are excited to be a partner in their endeavors.”
