The Self-Help Enterprises service area is comprised of eight counties in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley…the world’s most productive agricultural area.

Yet, even amongst this richness, there is an astonishing quantity of inadequate, if not hazardous, housing. In particular, the people who provide the source of labor for the agricultural fields can find little except substandard housing in existing stock, and have insufficient incomes to qualify for standard new home loans.

County	Area	Population	Unemployment Rate	Persons in Poverty
Fresno	5,962	799,407	14.1%	28.1%
Kern	8,142	661,645	11.3%	21.0%
Kings	1,389	129,461	14.0%	23.6%
Madera	2,138	123,109	11.7%	22.8%
Mariposa	1,451	17,130	7.8%	15.3%
Merced	1,929	210,554	14.4%	25.4%
Stanislaus	1,495	446,997	10.4%	18.4%
Tulare	4,824	368,021	15.4%	27.9%
TOTAL	27,330	2,756,324