Special Graduation Offers Dual Payoff for Village Residents
Real Estate Management’s ReStart Program Trains for a Beneficial Career

   SAN DIEGO – With less than 2% availability in the housing market and affordable living spaces at a premium, it is difficult for low- to middle-income people to find a place to live, and that challenge is multiplied exponentially if there are children in the equation.

   Tomorrow, however, there will be 15 once-homeless individuals (four from St. Vincent de Paul Village and 11 from Oceanside’s E.Y.E. Recovery Center) for whom that challenge will be infinitely more manageable. The group will graduate from a training program put on by the local chapter of the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM). The 12:30 p.m. ceremony will be held at the Mission Valley Hilton, 901 Camino del Rio South, and will feature Father Joe Carroll, IREM representatives and the graduates.

   The ten-week, 350-hour program offers comprehensive, hands-on training for the prospective Resident Apartment Managers. From extensive job shadowing and ethics to self-defense and guest speakers, students have a heavy regimen of instruction before completing an offsite internship at the course’s end. The experience will hopefully allow them to find related employment in a field that generally includes free or reduced rent as part of compensation packages. That situation is ideal for once-homeless individuals who are working to re-establish their independence, according to St. Vincent’s staff.

   "We couldn’t ask for a more suitable training program or a better job opportunity, especially for some of our single parents," says Ronna Smith, Program Manager for the Resource Department. "A lot of times our clients lack the skills and/or education to find a job that pays enough to provide for three or four kids, especially when you factor in childcare. The IREM training will allow them to work from their home, with a job that literally pays the rent."

   For more information on IREM and their programs in San Diego, please call 858-715-4736 or visit their web site at www.iremsd.org.

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