I live in Fresno CA in the mountains. My parents' home is in desperate need of repairs. There's no heating or air. The pipes are leaking everywhere, there's no water pressure, the dish washer and washing machine are non operational. There's no oven or stove, both stopped working. There's also extensive wood rot on the decks and house supports, one of the outside stairways has rot and is dangerous to use. The inside entry way has a wall and part of the ceiling missing which is open to a dangerous staircase with no railing. The home has consistent power surges, not sure what that's about.
My father suffers from cancer and is in bed most of the time. I graduated collage recently and take care of him. My mother and sister both work part time, we can afford some bills and food. I'm trying to figure out how to fix the house so it's safe.
Any help would be awesome! Be it videos and support of how I can fix these things, as I'm home all the time, or professionals who wouldn't mind working at low cost. I know it's a lot of work and that's unfair to ask, maybe someone who would take payments. I don't know what to do. Any help in any form would be awesome.
Thanks.
Add your voice! Click below to answer. ThriftyFun is powered by your wisdom!
Contact HUD.org or Habitat for Humanity. You can also ask churches for help.
You could post on NextDoor explaining a brief overview of your situation and ask if anyone has experience or is a handyman that could help out. I have seen very nice neighbors helping one another with home repairs. Or at a discounted price/ask for referral.
You can contact local churches and organizations if they offer volunteer or pro bono.
Also you can contact government services.
Ex: www.rd.usda.gov/
Oh my. You and your family will be in my prayers. It sounds like you need a number of services and care points and you may have a situation on your hands that could get very complicated, very quickly.
Is your father of sound mind? If so, he is going to need to be the person making the calls or if you or your mother are his written/legal power of attorney (POA) you or she can make the calls. In these cases, things should be smooth and you should be able to ask for and receive help.
If your father is not of sound mind and does not have a designated POA then you may face a number of challenges in this matter--which is where it could get very complicated.
I am not familiar with CA law, so if he has no legal POA and is not of sound mind--you may want to contact some kind of legal aide services to help you in this process. To do this, contact your state rep-- Jim Costa. Here is a link to his website. costa.house.gov/
Call him first if your dad has no POA and is not of sound mind and get them to start helping you find legal representation and possibly services that you need
If your dad is of sound mind--here are the two contacts to start:
1. Eldercare Locator at 1-800-677-1116. Your father is considered (by every standard I know of) to be "endangered". My hope is this service will get you pointed in the right direction to get him at least to a place that is safe, has heat/air and water.
2. If your father has been hospitalized in the past few months, contact the hospital where he was and ask for their social services department and tell them everything you have said here and ask for help.
Please post back with updates. Prayers will continue.
To get help with a few replacement items around the house you can check on Freecycle. I know in your area there are people who use this and it is easy to ask for help or make a list of time that you need.
As for home repair you can check with HUD or some local churches in your area to see if they can offer you some assistance. I would also contact a social worker or case worker that helps out your dad.
Add your voice! Click below to answer. ThriftyFun is powered by your wisdom!
