Landlords Must Lend a Hand

* Re “Job-Rich, Housing-Poor,” Dec. 2:

I appreciate your excellent editorial on Jan. 2, regarding housing in Orange County.

The need for affordable housing here is obvious for those with low-paying jobs, both in the humanitarian sense and for the future of the Orange County economy.

There is an area of housing which the editorial did not address, however.

The rental market is so good right now that landlords need not consider anyone with less than perfect credit and rental histories.

FISH (Friends in Service to Humanity) Harbor Area and its Homes With Hope program assists families who have the promise of becoming self-sufficient.

Obviously, these families have had difficulties and do not have perfect credit and rental records. Finding rental apartments or homes for these families is next to impossible, even with the backing of our agency.

We have encountered four landlords who will cooperate with Homes With Hope and our clients. These were found after over 100 phone calls in answer to newspaper ads, rental signs and other contacts.

This refusal by most landlords to even discuss less than perfect credit and rental records of employed people contributes substantially to a permanent underclass in our county.

JUDY MADER

Program manager

Homes With Hope

Newport Beach