Mercy Housing California

Reviewed by the Sacramento Region Community Foundation

$300 raised by 5 donors

6% complete

$5,000 Goal

Mercy Housing California (MHC) is the largest regional division of national not-for-profit Mercy Housing, Inc. founded in 1981 and one of the nation's largest developers of affordable housing. Now in our 43rd year, Mercy Housing California has developed and currently owns and/or manages 160+ properties, a total of 11,720 affordable apartments, providing stable homes for nearly 21,000 low-income Californians, and an additional 3,000+ in homeownership. We’ve also assisted in the development of over 1,200 units of affordable apartments currently managed by other nonprofits in the state. 

 Our Sacramento office currently serves 3,297 households and nearly 7,000 residents of 49 affordable housing properties in the Greater Sacramento Region. The properties include twenty-eight for families, ten for seniors, and eleven permanent supportive housing properties for persons with specific needs including formerly homeless, veterans, and individuals living with other physical and mental disabilities.

Forty-one properties in the region provide free onsite, supportive resident services programs through MHC staff and/or third-party partners. Each property provides programs designed specifically for the population served: family, senior, veterans, and others with special needs in four focus areas.

Housing Stability Activity includes one-on-one lease education, links to financial resources, unemployment support and employment resources, and creation of team focused Housing Support Plans for 100% of residents experiencing financial hardships and/or lease violation to ensure housing stability for our residents.  

Health & Wellness Activities include connections to onsite food banks and pantries, health fairs, health education and screenings, nutrition education, and cooking classes. We’re partnering with Share Our Strength and No Kid Hungry on a Nutrition in Housing pilot through the end of 2024 providing residents with Instacart memberships, nutrition education, and other resources at two family properties in the Sacramento area.

Community Engagement Activities include Back-to-School celebrations, community gardens, community connect meetings with staff and residents, cross-cultural events to help bridge cultural gaps, and safety and violence prevention activities.

Out of School Time Activities provide youth with homework support, supplies, and snacks needed to succeed in school.  We work to ensure parent engagement through newsletters, events and personal outreach via phone and in-person meetings. Last fall we introduced Second Step afterschool curriculum to assist youth with Social Emotional Learning skills. KidzLit, an evidence based literacy program, is used at some of the sites. Our annual summer program Camp Mercy takes place during the school summer break.

Giving Activity

Mission

Our mission is to create stable, vibrant, and healthy communities by developing, financing, and operating affordable, program-enriched housing for families, seniors and people with special needs who lack the economic resources to access quality, safe housing.

Needs

Providing safe and stable places to live, Mercy Housing California’s affordable housing helps close the housing gap, provides supportive resident services programs, and creates community environments where families and individuals can thrive. Regardless of the scale and population served, each Mercy Housing community is built with an unwavering commitment to dynamic partnerships, creative vision and extensive community planning. Our work includes the development of affordable housing and provision of onsite supportive resident services programs.

Affordable Housing Development:

One of the largest and most experienced nonprofit affordable housing developers in the country, MHC has the ability to manage every aspect of affordable real estate development including project financing, community outreach and planning, construction management, property management and asset management. We are one of only a few national organizations that provide affordable housing for all low- and moderate-income populations, including supportive housing for homeless persons and families. Mercy Housing collaborates nationally and regionally with public, private, and government partners.

Resident Services Programs:

Recognizing that affordable housing alone cannot adequately address the complex problems created by economic inequality, Mercy Housing provides resident services with an emphasis on four key areas of support: Housing Stability, Health & Wellness, Education, and Community Engagement. Resident programs provide resources and opportunities useful in developing healthy lifestyles; safe space for youth to be active and engaged in school; education and support around financial stability; and encouraging residents to be active members of their community.

Unrestricted General Operating Support:

Funding for where need is greatest.

Volunteer Needs Vary at Each Property:

We have on-site holiday events, after school program support, book and backpack drives, food bank distributions, welcome baskets for new residents, and gardening and beautification activities that volunteers can support as individuals or groups.

Equity Statement

Mercy Housing was founded on the belief that housing justice is social justice. We live by the values of respect, justice, and mercy and commit ourselves to advancing racial equity, diversity, and inclusion (REDI).

REDI is the core of who we are. Our commitment to these values is unwavering, across all of our work. They are central to Mercy Housing’s mission and impact. We know that having varied perspectives helps generate better ideas to solve the complex housing challenges of a changing and increasingly diverse country.

We continually take action to infuse racial equity throughout our internal culture, systems, and practices. Deliberate steps strengthen our ability to recruit and retain exemplary diverse staff and leadership. Mercy Housing regularly reviews policies, practices, and procedures to support our values and enable employees to do their best work so that residents feel a sense of belonging in the communities where they live.

REDI progress changes conversations and paves the way for deeper, more lasting, and inclusive change. Moving forward, we continue to view our progress through a racial equity lens that drives efforts to ensure that Mercy Housing’s culture reflects the racially just communities we want to see.

Organization Data

Summary

Organization name

Mercy Housing California

other names

MHC

Year Established

1981

Mission Category

Housing, Shelter

Operating Budget

$10,000,001-$100 million

Organization Need

Funding: Program, Funding: Unrestricted, Volunteers

Demographics Served

Youth & Children, Low-income individuals/families, Homeless/Underhoused/Unhoused

Local Counties Served

El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, Yolo

Equity Statement

Equity Statement

Address

2512 River Plaza Dr. Suite 200
Sacramento, CA 95833

Service areas

Sacramento County, CA, US

Placer County, CA, US

El Dorado County, CA, US

Yolo County, CA, US

Phone

916-414-4429

Email

lmcgillivray@mercyhousing.org

Website

http://www.mercyhousing.org/california

Social Media