The modular home she purchased was actually set on the foundation two years ago, but the single-mother of two boys had to reverse a bad credit history, make sacrifices, practice restraint and to learn the financial culture of mortgages, she took a home-buyer education class.
Once prospective Mazaska clients complete the credit coaching and financial home-buying classes, they are eligible for short-term loans to finance a new home or rehab an existing home. Mazaska Executive Director Colleen Steele says the housing shortage on Pine Ridge has forced many tribal members to seek housing off the reservation.
Mazaska suggests tribal members work with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the tribal housing authority to obtain 25 year residential leases on their property since that is the key to qualifying for a traditional mortgage.
Steele: “Since Mazaska’s start, we have been building momentum by creating partnerships with other lenders to make affordable homeownership a reality for our people. The road has been long and even hard at times, but finding long-term, low-cost loan capital for mortgage lending and the partnerships that this will create makes the struggle worth it.“
Holquin, an employee of Indian Health Services, now sitting in her modular home, says, “It is a really wonderful feeling to know that it’s actually my home. It feels good to see all that hard work pay off for something.” ##
(Photo credit: rudiosonews–Apache Mescalero Native American modular home)
