Home ownership in America is one of the most common ways to build wealth for future generations.

But in Appalachia, West Virginia presents the complexities and nuances of that reality. The Mountain State has the nation’s highest homeownership rate but the second lowest personal income rate.

And there’s another reality at work. Much of that housing is old and needs repair. In one West Virginia county, 67 percent of the homes are more than 80 years old and half rate below normal on standard quality measures. One estimate shows there are 500,000 people living in such conditions. This is a side of the housing crisis we don't often hear — structures in disrepair without electricity, or running water, that people call home.

This episode of Us & Them is presented with support from the CRC Foundation.

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A photo of a middle age man with brown hair and wearing glasses. Behind him is a blue backdrop made to look like rolling mountains. At the bottom of the graphic are the words, "Jim King, Chief Executive Officer." — Jim King is CEO of FAHE, an organization that brings people, organizations, and resources together to build houses and communities in Appalachia. FAHE works with more than 50 community-based non-profits in six Appalachian states to offer housing leadership in one of the most difficult places to serve in the country.

*Courtesy of FAHE*

"We have about 3.8 million households in Appalachia, and by several measures, there are half a million people living in homes built before 1930 or in families earning less than 30% of area median income. Cuts to the HUD budget this year have hit federal assistance hard, leaving people with less buying power. All things equal, if your income is very low, your ability to find a decent place to live is very limited."

– Jim King., CEO of FAHE

A Black woman wearing a traditional African style outfit. She has — Joyce Vest has spent most of her life on a piece of land near Faber, Virginia. The 76-year-old, who suffers from emphysema, once lived in a home in desperate need of repairs. For several years, she resided in a makeshift dwelling consisting of two trailers pushed together under a roof pieced together over the jerry‐rigged structures. She had no running water or electricity, and over time, storms damaged her walls.

*Photo Credit: Trey Kay/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

“Back then I would get the water in a barrel for cleaning and cooking and all that stuff. I got a big pot out there that I use heat water in to bathe and stuff. I used wood and had a flue that I had built in for heat.”

– Joyce Vest

Two women stand next to each other on the porch of a home. They are both smiling. The older woman wears a traditional African outfit and is breathing with the assistance of an oxygen tank. — Joyce Vest stands on her front porch with her veterinarian and friend, Stacey Reeder. Several years ago, Vest brought in her dog, Sassy, for an exam after noticing the pet’s wounds weren’t healing. Reeder visited Vest’s home and found that the living conditions were challenging. Reeder helped Vest connect with the Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project (SERCAP), which offers programs ranging from septic and well services to community development and indoor plumbing for homeowners from Delaware to Florida.

*Photo Credit: Trey Kay/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

“I just realized when I came out here that that’s not a way for her to live, and if I could help her, we were going to do so. We started searching and looking [to find a service to help], and it took a couple of years before we had the house. It was one of those things that was on my heart that I had to do. To be honest, I didn’t realize people lived like that — without electricity and without water. I’m not sure how she did it, but she did. She managed. It was an eye-opening experience for me, and it made me realize that I needed to do some things.”

– Stacy Reeder, a veterinarian in rural Virginia

A Black middle age man stands in front of a window with the words SERCAP written on it. He is smiling and wears a gray shirt. — After veterinarian Stacey Reeder saw the condition of Joyce Vest’s home, she knew she had to act. A search online led her to the Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project (SERCAP). Kenneth Rogers (pictured above), a rural housing specialist with the organization, was eventually put on the case. SERCAP helped Vest enroll in the Indoor Plumbing & Rehabilitation program.

*Photo Credit: Trey Kay/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

"The Indoor Plumbing & Rehabilitation program is designed for low- to moderate-income homeowners who have no indoor plumbing, no potable water or a failed septic system. In her case, she had no well, no indoor bathroom and no septic system—so she fit the qualifications for the IPR program. It's a common challenge: even if a septic system was installed 50 years ago, it may now have failed or be underperforming and must be replaced to meet new water regulations and prevent groundwater contamination. And if someone who is 70 or 80 years old—who has lived in their home for decades—suddenly finds that their septic system has failed, they may be forced to install an alternative system that can cost up to $40,000, an expense unaffordable on a fixed income."

– Kenneth Rogers, rural housing specialist with Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project (SERCAP)

Photographs framed in a collage. Above them reads, "SERCAP 130 Sugar Hill Loop, Faber, VA BEFORE."

Photographs framed in a collage. Above them reads, "SERCAP 130 Sugar Hill Loop, Faber, VA AFTER."

(Pictured above) Kenneth Rogers showed Us & Them host Trey Kay two composites: before-and-after photographs of Joyce Vest’s home, taken before SERCAP built a new structure with electricity and running water. Courtesy of SERCAP

Us & Them: Housing Options Are Few & Far Between In Appalachia