Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I live walking distance from the White House in DC in a neighborhood called Shaw. It's the geographic center of the city, and hosts amazing architecture and history. The average townhome dates back to 1890-1910, is 2000 square feet and are mostly owned by long-time residents of the city or young families starting out.
Sounds like an ideal downtown neighborhood right?
Well, we also have 16 section 8 complexes in my neighborhood. So we have drunk people peeing in the street, weekly stabbings/shootings/beatings, drug problems, terrible schools, vandalism etc etc.
Despite decades of federal funding going into these complexes, the local population hasn't made an inch of progress. It has just subsidized multi-generational poverty and reliance on the vouchers, among other programs.
It's not just a waste, it's actually damaging the community.
If you're jealous, then join her. Otherwise you're just judging.
I'll judge the fricken program......pay you OWN rent.....when did it become Big Brothers job. Oh yeah, that is right, we are now basically a welfare type country. And yes I guess old Ronnie was right about the Welfare Queens.......yep......Old Ronnie was spot on.
I'll judge the fricken program......pay you OWN rent.....when did it become Big Brothers job. Oh yeah, that is right, we are now basically a welfare type country. And yes I guess old Ronnie was right about the Welfare Queens.......yep......Old Ronnie was spot on.
He did miss at least one thing. The fat man really did take from the skinny one to get that way.
It was if the lot could be split: $80K for the large house and $40K for the guest house. I had a "former" employer who was flush with cash and willing to finance it. (I had worked onsite 20 years for that employer, had a long hospitalization and temp disability, relocated cross country to live wityh relatives until I could return to work, then stayed put and worked a store job plus some remote projects for my former employer.)
How does the government not allow people to buy homes?
Allowing people to buy house that they couldn't afford is the reason that got us in the position we're in today.
Government does not allow poor people to buy homes by not allowing the sale of tiny homes the poor can afford.
Yes, government insanely decided to not only allow, but to blatantly prod lenders to allow, people to buy big houses they couldn't afford.
The common sense solution of allowing people who could afford only tiny homes to buy tiny homes...well government never liked that idea and wrote zoning rules to prohibit it.
Wow! 125 posts that are largely ignorant regarding the section 8 program and very lacking in understanding and compassion for the people who are forced to use them.
First of all the wait list for a second 8 voucher is generally two years or more - no matter how desperate your situation. People who apply for a voucher go through a stringent selection process. In almost every case, if your income is not at or below the poverty line, you will not qualify. The voucher program mainly is utilized by low income disabled, low income elderly, and low income families with children.
The value of a voucher is determined by what HUD calls the "fair market price" of a rental in the area you want to live in. This amount is almost always equivalent to the cheapest rentals in the poorer neighborhoods. If you want a snappy house in a classy neighborhood, forget it.
In my own case, I am a low income person on disability. I hate being on disability and have been trying to get off with no luck so far. I have a voucher and live in the rural and relatively inexpensive town of Cortez, Colorado. Rents here average around $700 for a one bedroom apartment. The "fair market value" of my voucher is $500. I live in a pretty shabby apartment wher the landlord is so cheap, he won't even repair broken screens. You can imagine how well he performs other kinds of upkeep.
Section 8 has a rule that you must pay one third of your income toward your rent. The voucher will cover the rest up to the "fair market value." I have an income of about $730.00/month which means I pay $243.00/month on my $500/month apartment and section 8 pays the other $257.00. Yep, me and other low income seniors and disabled are sure living it up thanks to section 8. NOT!
All this other stuff people have been posting is simply wrong. Period. But I guess some people are going to believe what they want - regardless of the facts.
First of all the wait list for a second 8 voucher is generally two years or more - no matter how desperate your situation. People who apply for a voucher go through a stringent selection process. In almost every case, if your income is not at or below the poverty line, you will not qualify. The voucher program mainly is utilized by low income disabled, low income elderly, and low income families with children.
Where I live, demand for vouchers vastly exceeds the supply, and a lottery is held to decide who gets on the waiting list.
First, of course, you have to qualify based on income. Last I checked the income eligibility cutoff was several thousands of dollars above poverty, but that's only the first step.
Then you have to wait until the waiting list opens, which can take years. Since demand for vouchers far exceeds supply, a lottery is held to decide who (among those income-eligible) gets a spot on the waiting list.
If you "win" this lottery you get as spot on the waiting list but you might have to wait a long time.
In my area, the last waiting list lottery was in 2007; I was eligible but did not win the lottery. So I am now waiting for the next lottery, but the waiting list is still sufficiently long that there is no lottery expected within the next 18 months.
I have heard that each local housing authority has some leeway in how they do things, so some HA's might just put people on a waiting list in the order they apply, instead of using a lottery.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Now all you gotta do is find a lot to put it on.
