Crisis Housing Solutions (CHS) was founded by Craig & Lisa Vanderlaan as Adopt a Hurricane Family (AHF) on August 30, 2005, in response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina.
After diligently working for 3+ years to assist disaster survivors of Katrina and Wilma with temporary & permanent housing solutions, AHF expanded its mission to assist those affected by any disaster – natural, manmade or economic.
“We build healthy communities where people live, work, and prosper.”
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Everyone has access to a safe, secure home in a vibrant, healthy community.
August 2005 – began assisting Katrina families in South Florida.
January 2006 – began working closely with the South Florida HUD office and their field director.
March 2006 – led a multi-agency effort to get 93 Wilma families out of FEMA trailers in C.B. Smith & Easterlin Parks and into permanent housing.
April 2006 – began working with FEMA’s Florida Long-Term Recovery Office in Orlando.
November 2006 – received 501(c)(3) not-for-profit status from the IRS.
June 2007 – began a 4-month collaborative effort for FEMA finding permanent housing for 170 families displaced by Hurricane Wilma; 54 of these families obtained new mobile homes.
December 2007 – provided turnkey management of the Davie Mobile Home Repair/Replacement Program using $1,275,000 in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Inititiative funds for Hurricane Wilma relief. 73 families received new mobile homes over a 14-month period.
May 2009 – applied for and received certification as a HUD Housing Counseling Agency.
October 2009 – providing case management services as part of the Homeless Prevention & Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) for Broward County and City of Ft. Lauderdale.
February 2010 – as a HUD Housing Counseling Agency, began offering Mortgage Delinquency/Default Counseling as part of broader Foreclosure Prevention Services.
April 2010 – began First-Time Homebuyer Program for Town of Davie.
March 2011 to Present – approved by JPMorgan Chase, HUD, Wells Fargo and the National Community Stabilization Trust (NCST) to obtain REO properties as part of our Community Stabilization Initiative.
April 2011 – received certification for the Treasury Department’s Florida Hardest Hit Fund (HHF) Program; providing mortgage assistance to qualified unemployed & under-employed homeowners having difficulty making mortgage payments.
July 2011 – launched our Community Stabilization Initiative whereby we acquire & rehab foreclosed properties; thus helping to revitalize neighborhoods and
providing a new source of affordable housing.”
March 2013 – approved partner for the HUD Home Discount Sales Program
October 2013 – approved as a service provider for the Treasury Department’s new Principal Reduction Program; intended to assist homeowners underwater on their mortgages.
January 2016 – completed formal feasibility study demonstrating the financial viability of constructing affordable multi-family housing from repurposed shipping containers
March 2017 – awarded a major capacity building grant by JPMorgan Chase for expanding affordable housing development activities into Central Florida.
October 2017 – as part of a collaborative with two Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI’s), received a multi-year PRO Neighborhoods Grant from JPMorgan Chase to further Central Florida activities.
January 2018 – acquired land in West Palm Beach, beginning a partnership with the City to construct new affordable multi-family housing from repurposed shipping containers. Groundbreaking fall 2019.
May 2019 – received major two-year capacity-building grant from prominent South Florida foundation to assist in bringing innovative container housing construction to fruition. Also supports the developmental costs of a new repurposing facility for container construction . . . the first of its kind in the country.
June 2019 – lead developer on the construction of a 2B/2B prototype of single family housing constructed from shipping containers. This demonstration model also enables the identification of optimal construction processes to be scaled up for larger projects; like the aforementioned WPB project.