Independent Living Solutions

Providing Independent Housing Counseling

Independent Living Solutions educates and advocates on behalf of our community members to allow them the most independent lives as possible.

We help empower people with disabilities to live independent, safe and stable lives by providing housing counseling, education and advocacy.

We Provide

Housing Counseling
Information and Referral
A Regional Housing Coordinator Program

Community Collaboration

We facilitate and collaborate on a number of local housing organizations and service committees:

Chester County Local Housing Options Team
Delaware County Local Housing Options Team
Better Living Better Lives
Chester County Community Services Planning Committee
Committee on Developmental Disabilities and Aging
Delaware County Every Day Lives Committee
Community Conversations of Improving Housing Outcomes for People with Mental Illness

For more information please contact:
Director of Independent Living Solutions | Diane Belnavis
610-384-6990 ext. 217 | diane.belnavis@handi-crafters.org

Housing Counseling

Our Housing Counseling Program serves both Chester and Delaware Counties, and assists people with disabilities in identifying the ways and means to live as independently as possible.

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Our individualized Housing Action Plan (HAP) focuses on a person’s abilities and helps map the direction toward their goals.

We stress creative solutions and the community coordination necessary to attain your goals! The Housing Action Plan (HAP) is an eleven-page document, which involves a lengthy interview resulting in the consumer being able to realistically determine what resources he or she will need in order to live independently.

The HAP addresses all aspects of independent living which include, but are not limited to: type of housing, location; roommates; ownership vs. rental; life skills support; vocational programs; advocacy; and finances.

All housing counseling begins as an I & R or Information and Referral contact. Information and Referral: It is our goal that everyone who contacts us leaves with appropriate information to address their needs.

While we encourage self-sufficiency we acknowledge the difficulty in accessing services and will do all in our power to make sure you have the correct name and number of the contact best suited to their concerns.

Please contact Diane Belnavis, diane.belnavis@handi-crafters.org 610-384-6990 ext. 217, or Nova Adams, nova.adams@handi-crafters.org 610-384-6990 ext. 216 for the appropriate agency referral.

Regional Housing Coordinator Program

The Regional Housing Coordinator Program (RHC) is a single point of contact between housing providers and service providers for information, training, technical assistance and referral.

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The goal of this statewide program is to improve or create housing choices for people with disabilities of all ages by improving the flow of information and communication between the affordable housing community and service providers.

The main objective of the RHC program is to create a bridge between two diverse systems, each with their own unique language, policies and procedures.

Region 9 contact: Arlette Wright, arlette.wright@handi-crafters.org 610-384-6990 ext. 213, serving: Berks, Chester, Lancaster, Lebanon and Schuylkill Counties

Region 10 contact Mary Vilter, mary.vilter@handi-crafters.org 610-384-6990 ext 228, serving: Bucks, Delaware, Lehigh, Montgomery and Northampton Counties

Life is Better Together – Roommate Group

Coming soon! Check back for more information.