Disabled guy and his caregiver looking to move to Colorado. Where to live via section 8? (Denver: apartment)

[Wendal]

I'm a caregiver for a guy with cerebral palsy and in a wheelchair. We're in Austin and both looking to move to Colorado soon. We're trying to decide what city/town to move to. He can't work and only gets around $900 a month via SSI but he will also have his section 8 voucher which I believe will pay around 70% of his rent. I'll be rooming with him, I make around $70,000 a year working for him. We're looking to rent either a small house or 2 bedroom duplex, we don't want an apartment because I have a dog. Ideally we want to live in an area that's not crime ridden (much of section 8 housing in Austin has a lot of crime) and also want to live in a place that has a decent amount of trees.



We were thinking either Colorado Springs or Boulder although I hear Boulder is too pricey but we'd also maybe consider a suburb of Denver or Woodland Park.



Also, unlike Texas, his section 8 voucher in Colorado should allow him to live where ever he can afford aka they can't turn him down because he's on section 8.





Ideas?

[NW Crow]

Could still be difficult.

Lots of links here
https://www.google.com/search?q=colo...&ie=UTF-8#ip=1

Open waiting lists
https://affordablehousingonline.com/...lists/Colorado

If you consider Colorado Springs, there are plenty of threads that touch on crime concerns / often times by neighborhood. Use search tool at top right corner to find comments of topics of interest. Including section 8 experiences.

[cowboyxjon]

I would also add (although probably less important than details about Section 8) that this is a dry climate, so there aren’t as many trees here. I’ve been to Austin once, but I don’t remember much about trees. I can tell you that Colorado is not lush and green like states on the East Coast.

I know it might be difficult, but visiting first might be helpful.

[Wendal]

Thanks for the replies, I'll check out those links.



cowboyxjon- I've been visiting Colorado every year mostly during the winter for the last 10 or so years and I love the small mountain towns like Estes Park, Breckenridge, Durango, Telluride, Ouray, Aspen etc. Love the mountains and the abundance of tall pine and lodge pole trees. But I seriously doubt we'll be able to afford or find section 8 in these tourist towns. However I'm not a huge fan of the plains like Denver. But I know even Denver, Boulder, COS etc do have some planted mature trees in town. Austin and the surrounding hill country is pretty green, lots of trees so I realize it'll be a bit of a sacrifice not living around quite as many trees but the trade off will be living within driving distance of the mountain towns I love plus I will love the long winters. As I'm sure you know we don't get much of a winter at all in Austin.



Ideally, we would like to find a place that's affordable and also fairly woodsy like Woodland Park, Black Forest etc.

[MountainEarth]

Woodland Park is far from affordable anymore, and housing up here is in extremely short supply. Homelessness in the surrounding forest has been on the rise for a couple years now.

[Colorado Rambler]

I've been away for a while, so I only just now saw OP's post. Hopefully, they'll return and see my reply, but I know that there are plenty of folks out there with the same or similar questions, so I'll go ahead and respond with the info I have.

First of all, you need to find out what HUD has set as the "Fair Market Rent" for the area(s) you are interested in. You can check out HUD's list for every state - Colorado included - at the -FY2022 Final Fair Market Rents Documentation System web site. Click on "Colorado," to get a listing of FMR's by county and zip code.

El Paso County which includes Colorado Springs, has FMR's which vary according to the zip code where the rental property is located. For a two bedroom in the 80118 zip code the FMR is $2,490.00. The neighborhoods with the lowest FMR's for a 2 bedroom are 80926 at $790.00 and 80832 at $990.

Spoiler Alert: It can be very difficult to find a landlord who will rent a property for the FMV, no matter what the zip code. And the rules say that you are not allowed to make up the difference yourself by paying the landlord the remaining rent under the table. This makes the housing search in desirable neighborhoods very difficult. However, there are sometimes ways you can get around this requirement. Don't give up.

It might be helpful if you could get the information you need straight from the horse's mouth - the number for the HUD office in CO Springs/El Paso County is (719) 387-6700. Very likely they will be hard to reach, so keep trying.

I also strongly urge you to get in touch with the Colorado Springs Independence Center. If you are not familiar with them, there are Independence Centers all across the country, and their sole mission is to help those with disabilities which would include your friend since he has cerebral palsy. One of the many services they offer is assistance in finding housing and help with housing vouchers (section 8). Contact Info:

729 S. Tejon St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903

Phone: 1 (719) 471-8181
Fax: 1 (719) 471-7829
Video Phone (for Deaf & Hard of Hearing Only): 719-358-2513

Regular Operating Hours:
MON-FRI• 8:00 AM–4:30 PM

The above information is just the beginning of what's out there. Do you know about porting your voucher? Are you aware of the various programs available for the caregivers of those with disabilities? I am a volunteer for the Colorado Cross Disability Coalition (CCDC) and a Colorado Springs native. I now live on the Western Slope, so I'm pretty familiar with Vouchers and other housing programs all across the state. I'd be more than happy to provide you with answers to any questions you may have and if I don't know the answer, I am well acquainted with Julie Reskin who is the head of CCDC, and knows EVERYTHING about the disability programs in our state.

Please feel free to DM me if you want.

And best of luck with your move!