Community Housing Services Agency Inc

Community Housing Services Agency, Inc. (CHSA) mission is to facilitate the retention, improvement and development of affordable quality housing and neighborhoods, through innovative investments, partnerships, and other means.  

Throughout the 1980s, homes across Savannah deteriorated into blighted, crime-riddled properties.  Places where families once gathered became uninhabitable spaces.  This likely attributable to the long-term economic wealth gap that has made access to capital and credit difficult- especially to persons of color.  Chatham County residents who are Black earn much less, on average than their White peers ($22,213 vs. $41,883, respectively).  And in 2019 banks received only one mortgage application from a Black Savannah resident for every five received from White residents.  The value of homes in majority Black Savannah neighborhoods averages 23% below homes in majority White neighborhoods.  

Housing costs have outpaced incomes 2:1 over the past 30 years.  Soaring lumber prices that have tripled over the past 12 months have caused an average new single-family home price to increase by $35,873.  About 40% of Savannah households are cost-burdened and cannot afford quality housing due to incomes not keeping pace with increased housing and land costs, increased construction costs, and the impact of COVID.

Low and modest-wage seniors, veterans, and under-served homeowners are typically unable to secure home improvement loans from banks because of payment affordability.  COVID has placed an even greater burden on eligible homeowners to contribute funds to their repairs, and though volunteer labor enables 3 times as many homeowners to be assisted each year than would otherwise be possible, only 4 groups have decided to participate, increasing costs.  Small contractors have also been affected, 80% of which historically partner and complete programmatic repairs are minority contractors.

Additional funds are needed to ensure as many low and modest wage Savannah homeowners are able to maintain and retain their affordable housing - to avoid incurring costly Code Compliance citations, or worse, becoming homeless as a result of their dwelling becoming uninhabitable.