BATH—MaineHousing has awarded Bath Housing Development Corporation a $150,000 grant
to continue its trailblazing “Comfortably Home” program in 2023.
Along with that funding, MaineHousing is expanding the income range for qualified
homeowners, and also offering a slightly higher budget per household served. This will help
Bath Housing absorb some of the significant cost increases of the past few years for this free
program, while at the same time allowing more to participate.
Since the inception of Comfortably Home — leading the way for similar programs around the
state — guidelines have historically established 80% of the Area Median Income, or AMI, as the
maximum income for eligibility. Effective immediately, this has shifted to 100% of AMI.
AMI numbers vary by county and household size. In Sagadahoc County, a single-person
household would now be income-eligible with an annual income up to $61,180, compared to the
previous maximum of $48,950. A two-person household maximum income has gone up to
$69,920.
“The funding is critical, and we couldn’t be more grateful that MaineHousing continues to
provide the foundation for this important program,” Bath Housing Executive Director Debora
Keller said. “The expanded income guidelines are a bonus gift: this will allow so many older and
disabled homeowners in the greater Bath/Brunswick area to participate, and to age in place —
safely, in their own homes.”
Keller created Comfortably Home in 2015 when she saw the maintenance challenges facing
older homeowners and people with disabilities who wanted to thrive in their own homes.
Installing handrails and shower seats, repairing stairs and windows, weatherizing, and
improving lighting are just some of the basic improvements that can make a critical difference in
safety.
MaineHousing’s “Community Aging in Place” grant began in 2017 to support the replication of
Bath Housing’s Comfortably Home initiative around the state in 2015.
“Over the past eight years, we’ve worked with more than 300 homeowners and we consistently
hear scores of ‘thrilled customers’ stories,” Keller said. “What may seem like a minor
modification can have a dramatic and positive impact on a person’s ability to thrive in their
home.”
Not only do many people prefer to stay in their own homes as they age, but these success
stories also reduce pressure on waiting lists for housing assistance, allowing housing
authorities’ limited resources to serve those with the greatest need.
Comfortably Home services extend to areas within a 15-mile radius of Bath, and include
Arrowsic, Bath, Bowdoin, Bowdoinham, Brunswick, Freeport, Georgetown, Litchfield,
Phippsburg, Richmond, Sebasco, Topsham and Woolwich.
To find out if you are eligible, contact Comfortably Home Coordinator Kristen McEvoy at
, or call (207) 295-3317.
WGME aired this piece on the grant funding on February 8, 2023.
The Times Record published this story on February 10, 2023