NORWICH – Quaranta Housing Services, a subdivision of Opportunities for Chenango, is seeking out county residents in need of assistance in an effort to continue its mission of supporting families through new and ongoing programs that offer housing security.

Nearly 22.5 percent of Chenango County residents live in mobile homes – the highest percentage in New York State, according to the 2000 U.S. census. To accommodate the growing needs of mobile home residents in the county, Quaranta acquired funding through the New York State Home Program that let them replace seven manufactured homes for low-income households in 2011 and approve the replacement of another four homes in 2012.

According to Quaranta Chief Housing Program Director Karen Glasbergen, the agency sometimes struggles to prove the need for state and federal funding and is fortunate to be in one of only four New York counties to get this money.

The Manufactured Home Replacement Program reached full capacity at the beginning of the year and while the opportunity for county residents to replace their manufactured home has passed, Quaranta is still seeking more households for the Manufacture Home Repair Initiative, which offers qualified homeowners assistance for repairs to their manufactured homes.

“We’re still looking for projects; that’s been a difficult process,” Glasbergen said, noting that recipients must meet certain criteria including land ownership, possessing a post-1976 mobile home and homeowners insurance, and must be caught up on their taxes.