Among programs held by NCRCAP, the “Safe Housing Initiative” is one of the most important for rural communities in North Carolina. This program has the goal to eliminate health and safety hazards families can be exposed inside their own home. Since 1998 more than 70 households have been helped inside this programs.

This is a list of things done in the Safe Housing Initiative:

• installation and repairing of drinking water wells and septic systems
• repairing roofs, floors and windows which are deteriorated
• repairing both electrical and plumbing systems if they have some problems
• installing safer heating and cooling systems

All of that is done with the goal to bring the house up to current building regulations.

Inside this program there is another program, known as “PROMISE“, that bring students ages 16 to 21, to take home building course from Central Carolina Community College, in which they can learn how to build a bathroom for low-income household also in homes without indoor plumbing system, both for those who have a spare room to convert into a WC and for those without a spare room in their own home. The building course have to goal to provides occupational skills and increases job opportunities for locals.

The program provide help to build a real bathroom which, after it’s finished, is bring to participating home without any spare room to convert into WC and attached to the existing home according to county standards.

NCRCAP coordinate this project, identifies eligible households and assists them to have a loan or grant.

Other partnerships with JOCCA allow NCRCAP to enrolls eligible households in a Weatherization program which provides insulation systems, windows and doors which has to be fitted to ensure homes can meet USDA thermal standards.