1999 Best Practices
Success Stories

Program Name:			Gideon Housing Authority
Program Focus:			Affordable Housing
Geographic Area:			Rocky Mountain
State:			Colorado
City:			Denver

Executive Summary
When most people are searching for places to live, they look to newspapers, real estate magazines, or the Internet. These resources allow people to get an idea of the housing options that are available, the location of the house or apartment, and the cost to rent or buy it. For those who do not receive the local newspaper or real estate magazines and do not have access to the Internet, looking for housing can be very difficult. The Gideon Housing Authority, located in Gideon, MO, found a way to advertise their vacancies to a wider audience: a sign. The sign is located outside of the Housing Authority and is highly visible to all who pass by it. Because the Housing Authority sits on a main street that runs through the city, the sign acts as a superb advertising medium for open apartments.

In 1999, Shirley Love, the director of the Gideon Housing Authority, discovered that she had several low-rent apartments open for occupancy. Despite her advertisements in the local newspaper, she was unable to fill the vacancies. Mrs. Love brought the problem up at a meeting of the board of directors for the Housing Authority. Orval Deweese, the chairman of the board, suggested that she put up a sign outside the building in which the Housing Authority is located to publicize the openings. Mrs. Love bought a metal sign that reads "Apartment for Rent" at the local office supply store and hung it outside of the building. Weeks later, she had a number of applications to rent the apartments.

The Gideon Housing Authority is responsible for low-rent apartments, and their residents customarily are living on a tight budget. The population that the Housing Authority targets does not necessarily receive the local newspaper on a daily basis. Therefore, the advertisements that Mrs. Love placed in the newspaper did not reach them. However, the sign allows all people who live in or around the town of Gideon to see when apartments are available. It has proved very effective in filling openings, and the Gideon Housing Authority has experienced full or near-full capacity since the sign was posted.

Mrs. Love received such success with the "Apartment for Rent" sign that she was featured in an article in The Delta News Journal, the local newspaper out of Malden, MO. Additionally, she was asked to speak at a local women’s club meeting in Gideon. The idea was so well received in Missouri that the Housing Authority located in Bloomfield, about 45 miles away from Gideon, put up an "Apartment for Rent" sign as well. Mrs. Love and the Gideon Housing Authority plan to continue to use the sign whenever an apartment becomes vacant. When the apartments are all filled, the sign comes down. This way, everyone knows the status of available low-rent apartments in Gideon.

Partners: Residents and Housing Authority of Gideon

Financing: Various Funding Sources

Point of Contact:

Abbie Gaffey, Phone: (712) 279-6255