With home prices and rents both rising nearly 20% over the past year, finding an affordable home is becoming harder and harder for so many underserved communities.
"Can you imagine trying to succeed at school whether you're 5 or 15 years old if you're worried about where you're going to sleep at night … or where your next meal is coming from?" Paige Carlson-Heim said.
Paige, TD Bank's Director of the Office of Charitable & Corporate Giving and the TD Charitable Foundation, says that the lack of affordable housing for so many in this country affects everyone, directly or indirectly. She says it's everyone's responsibility to help if they can.
"It's sad, but a tremendously big issue for people in this country," Paige said. "When things happen in the community, we have to do our part."
The Housing for Everyone Grant Program has been helping those in need of affordable housing for the past 17 years. With the announcement of this year's recipients, TD will have awarded $42 million to over 500 worthy organizations since 2005.
"This program is about supporting the creation, preservation and development of homes people can afford throughout our footprint from Maine to Florida [and beyond]," Paige said.