"It is a major objective of our office to connect local government with each and every one of our neighborhoods in a meaningful way. The foundation of every strong community is neighborhood partnerships."
San José Councilmember
Cortese
"We need affordable housing so that people with a lower income can afford to live and work in our City."
San José Councilmember
Chuck Reed
"It is important for elected officials to support - and even promote - affordable housing efforts in their communities. The Mayor and City Council are some of the strongest advocates for the development of affordable housing in San José."
Charlotte Powers
Former San José
City Councilmember
"We appreciate the efforts of San José’s Housing Department and the commitment to affordable housing shown by the Mayor and members of the City Council. So much has been accomplished, but we must not let that slow us down. Lower-income households in this valley need assistance now more than ever."
Chris Block
Catholic Charities
"San José is a leader in providing affordable housing. High-technology employers, like those in San José, recognize that we need housing not only affordable to our workers but also for all of the residents who make up the fabric of our communities."
Carl Guardino/Leslee Coleman
Silicon Valley
Manufacturing Group
"I was thinking about moving out of the area before the Teacher Homebuyer Program assisted me in getting a two-bedroom, two-bathroom condominium. I’ve been teaching here for two years, but it would have been my last year if I hadn’t been able to buy."
Armando Townsend
Math and Economics Teacher
Genesis High School
"We are lucky to have the City of San José as a partner. Despite all of our efforts, without the City and its commitment to affordable housing, nothing affordable would have been built."
Jim Morley
JSM Developers
"It is amazing to think about the number of people involved of an affordable housing project. You get a sense of the magnitude when you attend a grand opening or ground breaking event where it takes half-an-hour to give credit to all people involved."
Barry Swenson
Builder
Green Valley Corporation
"We love living in our new home. It’s near my job. We have child care next door. And, we enjoy all the amenities of more expensive apartments."
A tenant in one of the
Housing Department’s
Development
"Teachers deserve to have an opportunity to live where they work. Towards this end, I am dedicated to the task of providing affordable for teachers."
Forrest Williams
San José Councilman
"We feel safe here even though we are alone. We are surrounded by friends and we accompany each other on trips to the market, doctor, library, art class, water aerobics and other places and events."
A resident of senior housing
"As a single parent affordable housing gave me the opportunity to work my way through a trade school, give my son excellent education close to home, start a business close to home... Thanks to everyone who advocates for affordable housing."
A resident of affordable housing
"...A school librarian by profession... A budget cut reduced my job to 3.5 hours a day... I faced eviction because I was no longer able to afford my monthly rent payment... I am grateful for affordable housing."
A resident of affordable housing
"I’ll be starting school this fall with my 5 year old to try and get my diploma so I can go to trade school... I need the help of low cost rent to make a future for me and my kids."
A resident of affordable housing
"What matters most to Ecumenical Association of Housing (EAH), is creating community. We believe quality affordable housing is an asset in the community, enabling employees to live near their jobs, seniors and young adults to remain near family and friends."
Betty Pagett
Director
Education and Advocacy
"If we are ever to achieve an acceptable volume of affordable housing production, the neighborhoods into which the housing will be built have to be convinced that affordable housing can be a good neighbor. The key to that acceptance is aggressive, hands-on property management."
Luis Belmonte
AMB Realty Advisors
"We’re returning to the original vision of public housing: giving every American a clean, safe, decent place to live and offering residents the support they need to move up the economic ladder. We’re building communities, rather than institutions. We’re building neighborhoods, not projects. By dispersing housing throughout the City, they are ensuring that the errors of the past are not revisited."
Honorable Andrew Cuomo
Secretary, U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development
"The Teacher Homebuyer Program shows how much the City and the State care about helping teachers, especially in San José. I’m very thankful to the Mayor and State Treasurer Phil Angelides because they helped me to buy my first home. I wish more teachers would take advantage of the Mortgage Credit Certificate program - I don’t think that many teachers are aware of the tax credit benefits."
Main Anh Nguyen
Hillsdale Elementary School
"We sometimes find neighborhood groups that have images of projects from the ’50s... They remember mistakes that were made through urban renewal. They are scared of poorly designed and maintained units that degrade a neighborhood. The old image really isn’t true anymore."
Jeff Oberdorfer
Executive Director
First Community Housing
"My mom is also a teacher in San José, for the same school district. Plus my daughter attends school where I teach. Being able to afford a home in San José means keeping our family together."
Lara Bierman
Edenvale School
"The Teacher Homebuyer Program has been a tremendous help. It’s perfect because it allows me to stay in a profession I love and buy a home in the area where I grew up. I get to help students as well as give back to my home community while continuing to do what I enjoy professionally."
Brad Sanfilippo
Language Arts
Willow Glen Junior High
"I had been looking for something I could afford for the last two years. I had even signed up for the Below Market Rate (BMR) Housing Program in another city. Had that worked out, I would have moved and changed jobs. I’m glad to be staying near where the rest of my family lives... my home at Crescent Parc... kids living here are my students and now I will get to watch them grow up."
Sandee Plymire
Cory Elementary School
"...every time I bid on a home in the last three years, someone else would come in and offer an extra $35K in cash. When Siena Court came along, I was the first in-line, the first to qualify, and the first to buy. The City assisted me with a second mortgage. On top of that, the State Treasurer started the Teacher Mortgage Credit Certificate program. That was lucky because it kept me from needing to take a second job."
Peter Demmie
McKinley Elementary School
"We love living in our new home. It’s near my job. We have child care next door. And, we enjoy all the amenities of more expensive apartments."
A tenant in one of the
Housing Department’s
Development
"Teachers deserve to have an opportunity to live where they work. Towards this end, I am dedicated to the task of providing affordable housing for teachers."
Forrest Williams
San José Councilman
"We feel safe here even though we are alone. We are surrounded by friends and we accompany each other on trips to the market, doctor, library, art class, water aerobics and other places and events."
A resident of senior housing
"As a single parent affordable housing gave me the opportunity to work my way through a trade school, give my son excellent education close to home, start a business close to home... Thanks to everyone who advocates for affordable housing."
A resident of affordable housing
"...A school librarian by profession... A budget cut reduced my job to 3.5 hours a day... I faced eviction because I was no longer able to afford my monthly rent payment... I am grateful for affordable housing."
A resident of affordable housing
"The need for decent, affordable housing - which continued unabated even while the economy was growing - will be even more critical now that we are entering a period of uncertainty. The partnerships we’ve forged between developers, sources of capital and the public sector must remain strong, if we want to continue strengthening our communities. Strong, safe, livable communities are the bedrock of this country."
Michael A.Costa
President
Simpson Housing Solutions
"What matters most to Ecumenical Association of Housing (EAH), is creating community. We believe quality affordable housing is an asset in the community, enabling employees to live near their jobs, seniors and young adults to remain near family and friends."
Betty Pagett
Director
Education and Advocacy
"If we are ever to achieve an acceptable volume of affordable housing production, the neighborhoods into which the housing will be built have to be convinced that affordable housing can be a good neighbor. The key to that acceptance is aggressive, hands-on property management."
Luis Belmonte
AMB Realty Advisors