Low-income homeowners and the challenges of home maintenance

Although low-income homeownership has increased in recent years, a critical question remains about the quality of homes purchased by these owners and their ability to provide the needed maintenance and repairs to their homes over the long-term to guarantee safe and healthy environments for the occupants and also realize the many benefits of homeownership. This paper examines the home maintenance needs and challenges of low-income homeowners and how training can help these owners to proactively meet the maintenance needs of their homes. Low-income homeowners and agencies providing home maintenance assistance were surveyed to determine the challenges faced by low-income homeowners in maintaining their houses. Results from the survey showed that while some low-income homeowners’ homes need maintenance, the maintenance has been deferred due to the inability of the low-income homeowners to pay for professional services or self-perform the needed tasks.