advice for dealing with section-8'ers (Lancaster, Palmdale: section 8, apartments, renter)

[bluejeans]

My street was great until a couple of months ago - almost no noise, and then none after 9pm, maybe 2 loud parties per year, then there was the day the section 8's came, who unfortunately live adjacent to me. Now there's random arguing at the top of the driveway between midnight-7am - "I left my f*%#ing needle inside!" and such - trash everywhere, people attempting to enter my apartment who must be high because they just keep trying to use random keys to enter, a broken window...

The public housing authority couldn't care less. To start with, I have no idea how they managed to get in since they own a BMW , I've found that the housing authority takes 3 years to replace trashed plasterboard (even when the power company has demanded that the lack of wall exposes lethal wiring, and they have 2 weeks to fix it), vandalised doors, and "allow" 3 broken windows a year (I heard of a story from a friend, that one woman with a family was told to board up the window and wait 5 days for a replacement). The only action that ever seems to get taken, with complaints also, is for people, such as a friend, who lives in blocks of 50+ apartments. It's bad enough that this adjoining apartment, which has facilities for people with disabilities, was left vacant for a year, letalone just deciding to fill it with trash who somehow apply for all the subsidies you can think of, despite owning a $40,000 car.

How should I go about dealing with these pests? I have no problems with people applying for section 8, but I definately do if they decide that owning a high-status car and preying on any security flaw a neighbor might have in order to obtain whatever goods they can find is more important than being upstanding citizens...

[katenik]

have you reported the suspected fraud to the housing authority, repeatedly? you should. i expect they care more about that, than about your reduced quality of life.

[CESpeed]

Having the police over will definitely discourage bad behavior. When I was woroking Social Services, I had clients in Public Housing and a good number of them had cars nicer than mine (including new Chrysler 300). I don't understand how they get in, either.

[ibarrio]

Don't rent to them..it is the best thing you can do for the community. I have witnessed what section 8 does to a city (Palmdale & Lancaster).

[LMIinPghPA]

I too, am currently trying to find some way to deal with a section 8-er next door (literally, we share a wall; we're in row houses). We've been living here a year and were planning on fixing up our unit with the hopes of selling in the next 5-7 years. However, living next to such a bag of gutter trash, we are reconsidering that time frame. The woman has a dog that looks like it would most certainly bite if given the chance. We actually had to put up privacy/security lattice to separate our porch from her back stoop b/c the dog could easily fit his head thru the rungs in our porch railing. We kind of overlooked it at first (not really being out in our back yard/porch much while moving in and unpacking and didn't want to offend our lovely new neighbor) however, when we adopted our puppy, the 8-er dog became a little more aggressive and started to lunge a little more each time at our dog when going in/out the back door. Since putting up the privacy/security lattice, we have also put up a six foot cedar fence between the 2 backyard areas. In the process of erecting the fence we were continually harassed while she was "on the phone" (talking very loud so we were sure to hear everything she said). Apparently her dog never barked before we moved in (a lie, he barks at anything that moves) and she "just doesn't know what to do, she can't take all the barking she just going to have to burn her house down" Not kidding at all, her exact words. We did come to find out she was not supposed have a dog, but her landlord has done nothing about it--he still gets his money. The current drama is now on parking. Parking here is street parking (first come, first serve, unless handicapped and she is not), she puts out traffic cones and an old metal chair while she's gone so that she get the space in front her house every time. The fist time she pulled this stunt, she put the cone and chair in front of our house--my husband moved it and parked our car in front of our house. When she got home that night, you could hear her calling us every name in the book out on the street (this was about 11pm) and then she started pounding on our door. We didn't answer b/c all she wanted to do was cuss at us and we didn't call the cops b/c she'd deny ever acting in such a way. I have been living in Pittsburgh for almost 10 years now and have loved every bit of it until we decided to buy our own home. Now I'm beginning to hate living in the city and section 8-ers especially. We want to complain, but who do you go to? The landlord could care less. It makes me sick to think that my hard earned tax payer dollars are paying her rent and she has the arrogance to act like the world owes it to her!! My advice to other: don't rent or buy in section 8 areas!!!!

[SandyCo]

You won't get any argument from me! I do understand that Section 8 is available to help people who are poor and/or disabled. However, the Section 8 people who end up living in my apartment building are low class, third or fourth generation welfare, and generally foul mouthed. One time I heard people arguing loudly at 2:30 a.m. They just didn't give a damn. I called 911. And here's a familiar song - most of them also drove nicer cars than I do. BMWs, Cadillacs...

[Ultrarunner]

Originally Posted by LMIinPghPA

My advice to others: don't rent or buy in section 8 areas!!!!

At one time there were areas without Section 8 subsidized housing... because all subsidized housing was concentrated in the Projects predominantly found in inner city neighborhoods.

The entire reason Section 8 and later, Housing Vouchers came into being is to insure those receiving assistance can live anywhere in the United States... there are no areas of the country that aren't Section 8 areas.

Certificate portability insures those meeting assistance eligibility can move throughout the county without the need to re-apply.

The only limiting factors are the unit must pass Minimum Housing Quality Standards and the Property Owner must be willing to accept the rent being offered through the program.

[fatmancomics]

Move.

[NYSD1995]

Dealing with problem neighbors takes time and effort.

- talk to them
- contact the other neighbors in the area
- contact the landlord if possible
- call police for noise complaints (along with your neighbors)
- work code compliance as much as possible
- document everything

the more support you can get from the neighbors the more people will respond. If you can get 3 neighbors coordinated to call, complain, and notify at the same time, you will see results.

[Ransomed]

We had a section 8 renter and if you can find out who the worker is that may help. While at the office once discussing our renter (who moved some homeless men into our condo)- the worker walked outside with my spouse and saw a lady pull off in a Lincoln Navigator. She immediately wrote down the license # and said, "Oh no she isn't driving THAT and getting help here. I need to run those plates!"