When Marjorie Delgarito’s husband died several years ago, she and the three children she was raising were left alone on a farm in the far reaches of the Navajo Nation in western New Mexico. Marjorie lived in a singlewide trailer with no running water or electricity with her 8-year-old son, infant niece, and 13-year-old granddaughter.
It was a difficult existence. “We had five five-gallon jugs of water we hauled into the house for washing and bathing,” Marjorie said. “We gathered and chopped wood for heat.”
One day almost two years ago, Marjorie came into the little town of Shiprock, New Mexico to get medical supplies for a neighbor. Next door to the hospital, Marjorie was surprised to see a new housing complex being built. The construction project was the Chaco River Apartments—one of the first multifamily facilities ever to be built on the Navajo Nation, and the first community-owned housing on the reservation. The New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority funded $8.3 million of the project through HOME loans and Low Income Housing Tax Credit equity.
The $13.5 million project marks a significant milestone in the decades-long struggle to ease the severe housing shortage that exists on all of New Mexico’s Tribal lands. “The need for this kind of housing is great,” said Marion Yonnie, asset manager for the Chaco River Apartments. “You wouldn't believe the stories we've heard—people living in their cars, whole families living in tents. One woman nearly cried when she moved in because she could turn on the faucet and get warm water."
Marjorie immediately applied for an apartment at Chaco River, one of almost 1,000 families that signed up to live in the complex. Only 96 were ultimately accepted, and up to 20 applications per week are still coming in.
When they walked into their new home in January 2010, Marjorie’s granddaughter went straight to the bathroom to wash up and then baked a cake to celebrate their arrival. Marjorie’s son said, “Dang, Mom, this is luxury! We can have a TV.”
A year after moving in, Marjorie said living at Chaco River still feels exciting and a little unreal. “The kids don’t have to finish their homework outside before it gets dark. They are on the honor roll now,” she added proudly. “We are very happy.”
To learn more about New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority, please visit their website.
For more information on the HOME and Housing Credit Programs, see our advocacy page.
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