Patricia Atkinson, 58, has lived in the same two-storey house in Hamilton’s Keith neighbourhood for 25 years. In this part of the central lower city, neighbours know each other and Atkinson feels at home. When her husband Donald died last year, she knew she wanted to stay — but had a $90,000 home-equity line of credit to contend with first.

Atkinson suffers from epilepsy and severe back problems, and receives Ontario disability support program (ODSP) payments. She knew paying off the