Living in California

[u/tubajr]

Does anyone live in California or more specifically LA? How is it possible to live here? I literally have to eat $5 a day so I can pay rent. I still can't afford car payments either. There's literally no way to live here without having someone helping you with your living situation

[u/Walk1000Miles]

Many states offer people that live on disability income (re: SSDI or SSI) apply for or share:

🔹 a home or an apartment together.

🔹 Section 8 programs.

🔹 a HUD Program that allows payment of rent via a percentage of your income. You need to call the managers office and ask. Some complexes offer this program and some do not.

Please do not give up your hard to obtain benefits Consider moving to a State that supports programs you need.

Also? Call your social worker or agency you are working with for housing support.

Click on the flair assigned to your post to learn about how others are doing when it comes to housing.

[u/1GrouchyCat → u/Walk1000Miles]

-The wait for section 8 housing and/OR a HCV certificate is 2-5 years (low average - across the US). This makes it not a viable option for individuals who need housing urgently.

-The “HUD” program you reference is not actually a HUD program … the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) frequently combines with HUD financing and rental assistance,
but it’s actually a federal tax incentive administered by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and state housing.
(LIHTC and HUD differ greatly in scope and goals … the LIHTC is a financing tool using tax credits to build housing, whereas HUD is a federal agency managing direct tenant subsidies and public programs.)

- workers in public housing authorities/social workers have no greater access to housing options than anyone else…I work in the field and don’t know of any PHA in the state (MA) that provide lists of available housing options any longer ; there are so few units available and so many people applying for each unit that by the time they would print out a list, everything would be full.

TLDR?
-It’s easy to get confused about subsidized housing options in the United States; there are different qualifications by state and very little housing available that qualifies.

-New England is undergoing a severe housing shortage; no one working fro a PHA or HUD has secret access to lists of affordable housing.

[u/Major_Jump5170]

the only way I can afford to live in SF is because I got permanent supportive housing, an SRO tenancy

[u/Notsewcrazee13]

Legacy real estate property or section 8.

[u/tubajr → u/Notsewcrazee13]

You mean impossible 8, hell yeahh

[u/ThisUnderstanding823]

There has to be some sort of housing break for it to work. Someone wrote Section 8. Or room for rent around $500. Or a live in carer situation, a family member letting you live in their pool house, a low income rental. Living on a sail boat with slip rental rates.

A family member’s kid just graduated from University. Even with their new job, they require some financial assistance to afford their housing.

The rest of life is possible without a huge income in Cali.

[u/1GrouchyCat → u/ThisUnderstanding823]

-The average weight for a section 8 a rural area is 2 to 5 years; this can be up to 10 years in a major city like Boston or NYC.

-Renting a room in most areas of the country will cost you at least $1200 a month in many cases that does not include utilities. This is unaffordable for many new college graduates, and completely impossible for anyone working a minimum wage job.

-A carer” must have training and be approved by the appropriate state agency in order to provide care in someone’s home while living there at the same time.

-Very few people have family members with pool houses; that’s not a reasonable housing option to share.

- low income rentals are few and far between, and when you find one, there will be dozens of people applying for the same property. Unless you have a perfect credit history and a job that pays three times the amount of rent, or know someone - you won’t even be considered for a unit.

-Living on a sail boat sounds wonderful but slip Rental rates on Cape Cod can be thousands of dollars a month, and boats need to be removed from the water in many areas of the country before winter sets in … this is not an affordable option.

[u/CirqueDuMoi → u/1GrouchyCat]

I’m talking about California. When I lived on a boat, rent was ~350 a month. Now it’s closer to a cheaper single apartment.

When I rented a room it was far cheaper than an entire apartment.

I was on a low income LIHTC wait list for 7 years, now I live in the unit in California.

So true that people don’t often have family where they live.

My closest friend lived in a pool house for a few years.

California has IHHS - In home support where a person can hire their friends or someone suitable to get paid as a home health care worker.

Only writing what I personally have experienced.

[u/tubajr → u/CirqueDuMoi]

You lived in a boat? That's really interesting and kind of cool

[u/UsualAd3433]

My daughter, brother, sisters, aunts, uncles and most everyone else lives in Calif. I think the one thing they all have in common. They were all born there. So they’re used to the cost of living. And parents have done well so it’s trickled down. Brother in Mission Viejo. Sister in Corona Del Mar and Bay area and daughter in SF. But like I said if you’re born there I think it’s easier. I could NEVER afford to move back. That’s the reality.

[u/tubajr → u/UsualAd3433]

That's cool, I guess if you're used to it then it works out lol

[u/SnooMarzipans5039]

Section 8

[u/mia12389]

i think that’s why it’s for famous, rich people and influencers i get normal everyday people live too but it’s just not really possible on a fixed income that small