Hands to Help Seniors

CHOMP has a number of great lectures starting soon including one for those with an irregular heartbeat on Thursday February 19 from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Peninsula Wellness Center in Marina (2920 2^nd Avenue in the conference room.   Learn the signs, symptoms, and how to treat and live with an irregular heartbeat at this lecture.  Space is limited so please call 625-4505 to register. For more information on classes at CHOMP go to www.chomp.org/classes.

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Reverse mortgages can be a great product to allow you to have sufficient resources to remain in your own home and independent.  You will, however, be foregoing part of any inheritance that you planned to leave to your heirs as the value of your home will diminish over time as you draw equity out of it.  For many seniors, however, it’s not a choice given the high cost of living in Monterey County and the scant (and in some years non-existent) increases in social security.  However, just like when you are getting a regular mortgage, be careful about who you involve in your personal finances.  The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) just put out a warning to anyone 62 and older (the age required to get a reverse mortgage) as they have received numerous complaints.  Consumers complain about how difficult it is to get loan terms changed and seniors also report being frustrated with slow and inconsistent communication from their reverse mortgage loan servicer.  To read the report, click here.  They also have a helpful web site called 3 things you or your loved ones should do if you have a reverse mortgage.  To read more on this, click here.

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The Pinnacle Quilt Guild will meet on February 19 from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. in the NDGW Adobe on 203 Fourth Street in San Juan Bautista.  Anyone with an interest in quilting is encouraged to attend the meetings which occur on the third Tuesday of each month.  

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Some much needed senior low-income housing is coming to downtown Monterey.  The City Council this week approved an exclusive negotiating agreement with the nonprofit Mid-Peninsula Housing in order to build a 19-unit facility on city-owned land on the 600 block of Van Buren Street.  Mid-Peninsula will build the housing and the city will lease the land to them for just $1 per year and help pay for pre-construction costs.  The city was actually backed into a corner in this situation.  After spending $1.3 million in federal low-income housing grants on the Van Buren Street parcels in 2000 and 2002, the city never built on them and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has demanded the money back.  This will resolve that situation.

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The Embroiders Guild of America will host a class on February 9 at Harden Ranch Foundation at 1636 Erica Street in Salinas from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.  This month’s program is an introduction to pulled threat.  After the program, they will have a mini stich-in to work on projects.  Stitchers of all levels are welcomed to come to all or part of the class.  There is a $10 fee if you want a kit, otherwise it’s free.  For more information call 373-2094.

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