Nothing More To Lose

There comes a time in some people's lives, when fear paralyzes their every move, dominates their every thought and leads them into a place of complacency and conformity and that is ok. When fear around my housing situation first gripped me back when I was a young divorced, mother of two I just put my head down worked hard, followed all the rules and was very great full my two kids had a roof over their heads.

Until recently, if your income increased anywhere from $20 to $200 dollars you had to tell them and your rent went up accordingly. Now, I hear rumors of those who utilize Federal Housing Programs may find that some of them will be paying 35% of their income or perhaps their Home Choice Voucher like mine, is on the chopping block (click here to learn more). My rent has already gone up allegedly because of a mistake that was made, but it is funny the correction took me to 35% of my income for rent.

Affordablehousingonline.com has a very interesting take on what could become a reality in the world of government housing waiting lists. " However, it is impossible to know exactly what Trump plans to do as he has not mentioned Section 8 or other housing programs specifically. We hold out hope that he realizes that these programs are not being abused and help keep millions of hard working American families out of homelessness." The article goes on to say.

Hope, what is that? Anymore in my mind hope is just another fantasy just like waiting for my knight in shining armor to come and save me; at least where being a recipient of government housing is concerned.

"Families in every state could face rent increases that could total $300 a year or more (see Appendix 1)." The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities article brings a suspicion of truth to some of the rumors I have been hearing about people's rent are possibly going up to 50% of their income. The thought of this not only squashes any hope I might have coned myself into holding on to; confirming it would be cheaper and more reliable if I bought a

camper to live in. The loan payments would then be 25% of my income.

The National Low Income Housing Coalition reminds us, "Research shows that when people have a stable home that they can afford, they are better able to find employment, achieve economic mobility, age in place, perform better in school, and maintain improved health." 

The tenants in the United States are not the only ones facing the surge in rents; the BBC reports "While containing the cost to taxpayers, it leaves housing benefit vulnerable to becoming increasingly irrelevant with respect to its purpose - maintaining the affordability of adequate housing for those on low incomes."

When you have nothing to lose, fear is no longer a problem. Fear has become a motivator. I was afraid to speak up because I live on the crack of the floorboards that President Trump is prying up because he can just feel there is a quarter under there. The more he pries pulls and tugs the wider that crack gets and more people will find themselves falling through the cracks regardless of whether they speak up or not.

So before we all go free-falling here, Call your members of Congress and urge them to SUPPORT full funding for affordable housing programs and OPPOSE any proposals that increase rents and impose arbitrary, administratively burdensome and wasteful work requirements on federal housing assistance programs.

TO AFRAID TO PARTICIPATE

There are a few reasons why I have not been working on this blog or participating in low-income housing activities for over a year now. Mostly because I am afraid. No seriously, I am afraid that I am going to lose my housing and without a way to make money, well you know the saying.

In the last three years, I have also been dealing with family issues that have taken a considerable amount of time and finances, which leaves me looking desperately for a job any job. Who will hire a disabled, over 50-year-old person without a college degree?

When I read all the negative things in low-income housing, I start to have panic attacks and look for used campers for sale because I am positive that is what I will end up living in. With talk of low-income rents going up maybe 50% of our incomes, I am just beside myself.

Here I play by your rules for years. Thinking that I would at least have a roof over my head and some food to put in my belly after some jerk shook me out like a rag doll and put me on the disabled roaster. How disappointing it has been. I have spent 16 years on disability doing everything that those in power, to help people like me, tell me to do only to find myself further in debt and it has been a hell of a crawl out.

If I am to pay more for my rent, 50% of my income, I have no problem with that what so ever. How are you going to convince the Landlords that this is acceptable when they want you to have three times the income of the rent of the unit? If I can pay 50% of my income for a rental unit, will it include a garden space so that I can grow some of my own food? Will it include all utilities as the electric heat here in Montana runs around $269 a month for about 400 sq feet maybe less footage but the price is high?

How am I to pay for electricity? How am I to pay for shampoo, toilet paper? Gas to get to whatever type of job I can scrounge up? By the way, for the last 16 years, I have walked up and down the highways of Montana collecting all the cans everyone is throwing out their car windows to supplement my income. I was not able to find a job that was compatible with my disability for 15 years so I had to do something to make sure I could still participate in family functions like the births of my grandchildren.

Here is another thing that keeps me up at night, if I were to buy life insurance at some point that will count as income and I will have to choose between housing or making sure my kids have the money to dispose of my body other than taking me to the mountains for the bears to have.

Society and the government would not let me live in a camper as that would be cheaper than paying rent.  I can buy a camper, self-contained for under 20 grand to live in, but that would trigger welfare checks, police visits; because it is not normal to live in a camper in the winter in Montana, stretching those resources even further than they are now. Most those folks drive over to Arizona where it warm, not below zero.

I don't understand it.  I worked hard all my life, spent my money raising two kids, paid into the social security system under the belief that everything would be ok if the sky fell. What a lie, our system is broken.

Don't get me wrong, I have empathy for those on DACA, I understand the need for helping others, but I don't understand how a person can slip through the cracks because they are $1.75 away from being considered self-sustaining even though not all factors and expenses of life are considered at today's rate, but rather two years prior.

How can you be considered self-sustaining when you can not pay the Real Market Rents of today's rental units?  When presenting the Government's Fair Market Rents, most landlords laugh and say, " Are you kidding?  I can get three times that much from someone else."

I am afraid to participate in the conversation around housing as I see that this issue is going to go nowhere. To live in these buildings under the draconian treatment from some of the property managers and the government's ignorance of what it actually takes to sustain life on the inappropriate wages, unfair return on money's paid into the system like social security; take control over what we can and can not afford to pay and what we can and can not do to help ourselves financially.

You put us here! Yes you, you business owner paying women 20 cents on the dollar! Yes you Big Brother, taking money out of our paychecks every week and telling us it will be there when we are old or disabled, but giving back exactly what you took and never paying us for the privilege of using our money to fund your drunken trips to Cavo.

Take a cut out of your pay Big Brother, one day of your pay would probably pay my rent for a couple of months I am sure.  Cut your pay Government Employes who make over $15 an hour and I bet you could find the money to save our housing, fund medical help, fund infrastructure that is beyond condemned and improve all our lives. But no Big Brother needs his mattress stuffed with brand new thousand dollar bills every two to three weeks so just keep slaving away little sister and I will let you know when you deserve to not sleep in the dumpster and fight the farel cats and dogs for the scraps.

There are more people in poverty than there are controlling this country. When will the majority be heard on this issue? Are we going to continue to allow those in control pay us far less than our sweat, sacrifices - missed first steps, family funerals, and time are worth? When will the government pay the interest that accumulated on the funds taken from our paychecks for when we grew old and disabled so we can live in today's world?

I say go ahead and bite the proverbial hand that feeds us. The hand is feeding us S***, and I for one am not going to buy it anymore. It is time, the Emperor is told he has no clothes!

Cottage homes could aid Bozeman's affordable housing dilemma

Cottage homes could aid Bozeman's affordable housing dilemma

Provide Opportunity: New Affordable Housing With Accessory Dwelling Units

Demand for affordable housing is outpacing supply in metro areas all across the country. This forces families to spend a greater share of their income on housing and limits housing choice. In response, cities are exploring new ways, such as Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), to increase the affordable housing supply while preserving neighborhood character and creating opportunity for homeowners. Accessory Dwelling Units, sometimes referred to as “granny flats,” are additional living quarters on single-family lots that are separate from (but often contiguous to) the primary dwelling unit such as converted garages or carriage houses.

Some municipalities have adopted ADU programs to permit the use and construction of accessory units as an inexpensive way to increase affordable housing. ADUs help increase a community’s housing supply quickly and affordably because they cost less than new housing units to construct. They also benefit homeowners by providing extra income that can mitigate housing and property tax costs. Creating ADUs can be a cost-effective way to create affordable housing in communities of opportunity. An ADU can be constructed as an interior, attached, or detached unit. Interior units are located within the primary structure, attached units are connected to the primary structure, and detached units are separate—for example, built above a detached garage. Attached and detached units, which are visible on the exterior of the house, are typically designed to blend in with the primary structure and neighborhood architecture. Allowing the construction of ADUs offers an alternative to rental projects that would create large and expensive buildings, altering the characteristics of a neighborhood.

Case Study: Minneapolis

On December 5, 2014, the Minneapolis City Council voted 10 to 1 to approve an amendment to the zoning code that expanded the ability to build ADUs from one pilot neighborhood to any lot with single or two-unit homes. Council Member Lisa Bender, who introduced the ordinance, said, “The great thing about this ordinance is that it really fits people at all ages and different life points….It creates more affordable rental options in the city, and rental income can help homeowners stay in their homes.”

Barriers to ADU Development

There are a few common but significant challenges with ADU development. Many people say they were challenged in either obtaining financing or paying for construction or permitting fees. Another challenge is design constraints such as setbacks and height limits. Other barriers include working through the planning and permitting process.

If you are interested in using HOME or CDBG for ADUs, please contact your local HUD CPD Field Office.

HOUSING WAGE FOR GALLATIN COUNTY MONTANA UNREALISTIC FOR THE WORKFORCE POPULATION

It baffles my mind how they report that a person needs to earn a minimum of  $21,285 a year to afford a Studio Apartment in Bozeman, Montana.  These apartments are far out of reach for someone living on a fixed income, and can not even work part time to supplement their SSDI without causing sever pain and possible damage to themselves physically.  But that is BozAngels,oh, sorry I mean Bozeman, Montana, has made common practice of squeezing out those who are not as financially astute as the larger populous they wish to attract. When I was a kid, back in the 60's and 70's, we called Bozeman, Bozo for Bozo the clown.

According to http://city-salaries.careertrends.com/d/a/Montana, all of the service industry, forestry people, and educational people can not afford to live in Gallatin County.  I find this quite humorous for a state that depends on Agriculture and Tourism for their bread and butter.

Check out this link, http://nlihc.org/oor/montana, at the National low Income Housing Coalition website.  They have loads of great information on rental housing for low income, affordable, workforce populations and there are tons of ways to get involved and stop the insanity we find predominantly in areas like Bozeman, Montana, who would rather their service people commute to Bozeman from far out laying areas, than offer decent affordable housing that wasn't built for those who are use to the finer things in life.

If you would like to make Affordable, Low-Income, Subsidized, what ever you wish to classify it, Workforce housing a priority in this election then go to : http://www.makeroomusa.org/, educate yourself, sign up as an INDIVIDUAL, you do not have to be part of an organization.  Truly one voice has the opportunity to change thousands of lives by answering this one call to action.  If you work in the service, tourism, or educational industries then stand up and let your voice be heard.

You can call Senator Jon Tester at:(406) 586-4450, after you have gone over the educational material on the makeroomusa.org site and ask him to make housing a priority. If you don't want to call the Senator, perhaps a personally worded letter about your experiences of finding affordable housing or a rental unit that is of acceptable size for your situation is like, what you need him to do to correct the issues that prevent honest, hardworking, people; some who are disabled and veterans from finding safe, decent, acceptable housing that allows us to have and grow a life, not house us until we die with no friends, family, or anything we value to make life just a little more accepting.

Senator Tester's address in Bozeman is: 1 E Main St #202, Bozeman, MT 59715, you can send a copy to his D.C. office as well, just to make sure someone receive your concerns at: 724 Hart Bldg, Washington, DC 20510.  It wouldn't be a bad idea to leave a voice message as well at : (202) 224-2644.

Below you will find other Politician information so that we may make sure all of those who are in charge of making sure our basic needs are included in the management of this county is raised to the priority level that it so rightly deserves.  After all if there is no one in town to scrub toilets, pick up dog poo, and teach the children of those in higher earning brackets, what will they do?  What will they do?

STEVE DAINES
REPUBLICAN

Washington, DC Office
320 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-2651
FAX: 202-224-9412
E-Mail

RYAN ZINKE
REPUBLICAN

Washington, DC Office
113 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-3211
Fax: (202) 225-5687
E-Mail

JON TESTER
DEMOCRAT

Washington, DC Office
724 Hart Senate Building
Washington, DC 20510-2604
202-224-2644 
FAX: 202-224-8594
E-Mail

More importantly, what will you do?  Will you answer this call to action and let the powers that be know how difficult it is to put a roof over your head, pay a child-sitter, car insurance, health insurance, electricity, gas, water/sewer, and least of all food on your table?  Will you ask them to make housing a priority in this coming election?  Or will you continue to stand by and hope for the best because you are to busy, not sure you want to get involved, or just don't think you have anything of value to add to the conversation?  The more people who call, the more likely we will get to have that conversation and level the rental playing field.

MONTANA RANKS 37TH NATIONWIDE WITH RENTERS PAYING MORE THAN 50% OF TOTAL INCOME FOR RENT!!!

Send an email

Our future supporters are in your inbox.
Cut and paste the sample email below to send to your colleagues, friends and family.

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Subject: Let’s Make Room

Hi [friends and colleagues],

I want you to know about the Make Room campaign, which is working to put the 11 million American families whose rent consumes more than half their incomes on the national agenda. Make Room is sharing real people’s stories and promoting solutions —all to urge our nation’s leaders to act. As part of the Concerts for the 1st series, top musical artists are lending their voices with performances in the living rooms of affected families. I’m excited to  be part of the beginning of this new effort and I hope you’ll join me today.

I would personally appreciate it if you could do these easy things to help us spread the word about Make Room and the families we’re aiming to help:

- Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram (@MakeRoomUSA)

- Sign up your email on the website to stay informed and hear about new ways to act. (Expect about 1-2 email updates a month and your email address won’t be shared).

- Forward this email to others and help spread the word about the campaign. One in 4 families who rent are affected by the rental crisis. It will take all of us to get our country’s leaders to pay more attention to the needs of struggling families.

Thank you for all you can do to help Make Room for everyone trying to make ends meet.

Send a Letter to the Editor

When the news media reports on rental housing in your area, you can use this template to quickly respond and bring attention to senior renters.

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To the editor:

For low-income people in [CITY/STATE], getting a job is only half the battle.(“[ARTICLE TITLE]”)

 The twin challenges of rapidly rising housing costs and stagnant wages mean even working families struggle to make ends meet, threatening household stability and our economy as a whole.

Experts generally advise renters to avoid paying more than 30 percent of their pretax income on housing costs, including rent and utilities. But rising rents and weak wage growth mean that’s increasingly difficult: A growing percentage of workers are paying more than the recommended 30 percent of income just to keep a roof over their heads – and in some cases far more.

A new report by Make Room, a national campaign to give renters a voice, found that in 2014, 20 million working adults paid more than 30 percent of their income on rent.

That’s a 22 percent increase from 2005, even as the number of workers overall grew by just two percent during the same time period.

It’s almost impossible to provide a steady life for your family when your rent keeps going up and your paychecks aren’t getting any bigger.

The Make Room analysis highlights the need to focus on the how to improve the lives of low-income families, an issue that deserves far more attention from our elected officials. We desperately need a bipartisan approach to ending the rental housing crisis and helping communities across America thrive.

Our policymakers should be working on serious, workable plans to increase the supply of affordable homes, direct scarce public resources to where they are needed most and ensure lower-income workers earn fair wages that are enough to live on.

Housing and wages are inextricably linked: Housing is typically a family’s largest monthly expense, and our local economy simply cannot thrive when a growing number of households have little buying power because they barely earn enough to keep a roof overhead.

To break this cycle, we must tackle these issues at the same time – lifting up the lowest-income workers and strengthening our economy in the process.

[Name][Organization][Local Address/Contact Information]

CUTS TO HOUSING AND SOCIAL SERVICES

Join your fellow advocates now in opposing cuts to nondefense discretionary (NDD) programs—including housing and social services programs—that are slated to take place in January 2013. 

Every local, state and national organization that cares about funding core government functions is urged to sign onto a letter to urge Congress to avoid the planned “sequester” by instead passing a balanced approach to deficit reduction that does not include additional cuts to these programs. 
Next January, NDD programs face indiscriminate, across-the-board cuts of 8.4% through the sequester. The cuts will devastate housing and social services programs; medical and scientific research; education and job training; infrastructure; public safety and law enforcement; public health; weather monitoring and environmental protection; and international relations.
NLIHC has joined with dozens of other national organizations, representing issues across the NDD spectrum, to protect these programs from additional cuts. This sign on letter is a part of our joint effort.
View the letter here.
Sign the letter here. Sign by COB June 22, 2012.

Thank you for your participation!

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Background Q&A
What is “NDD?”
Discretionary programs differ from “entitlement” programs that are funded rather automatically to meet the needs of all who qualify for them. Discretionary programs are those that Congress funds annually through the appropriations process. Congress retains complete discretion, or choice, on whether, and at what level, to fund discretionary programs.
Nondefense discretionary, or “NDD” programs, are core functions provided for the benefit of all, including housing and social services; medical and scientific research; education and job training; infrastructure; public safety and law enforcement; public health; weather monitoring and environmental protection; natural and cultural resources; and international relations. Every day, these programs support economic growth and strengthen the safety and security of every American in every state and community across the nation.


What is the sequester?
The Budget Control Act of 2011 (P.L. 112-25) established caps on discretionary spending over 10 years, resulting in $1 trillion in cuts spread across defense and NDD programs. The law also directed a congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to identify an additional $1.2 trillion in budgetary savings over ten years. The failure of the bi-partisan “Super Committee” to come to an agreement on a deficit reduction plan triggered a sequester to take effect on January 2, 2013.
To “sequester” means to set apart or to take something away until a debt has been repaid. In the context of funding federal programs, sequester means imminent, across-the-board cuts to most programs, both defense and nondefense—in addition to the $1 trillion in cuts already sustained through the Budget Control Act’s discretionary caps.
A few discretionary programs are exempt from the sequester in the first year, such as Pell grants in the Department of Education. Some mandatory programs (e.g., Medicaid) are also exempt.

Is there really any chance Congress will change its mind about the sequester?
Yes! There already is a vocal constituency clamoring to exempt defense programs from the sequester’s reach. Of course, removing only defense programs from the sequester would place additional burden on NDD programs. Leaders of national coalitions and networks that joined together in crafting this letter believe it is critical for Congress to reverse course and work to achieve deficit reduction with a balanced approach that does not include further cuts to NDD programs.

What can my organization do?
Your organization can sign onto this letter, urging Congress to “find a balanced approach to deficit reduction that does not include further cuts to NDD programs.”
Your organization can also help by sharing this letter with your networks and state/local chapters. All national, state and local organizations are encouraged to sign. The more sign-ons, the bigger our impact!