Odd public housing rule that makes 3 people share one bedroom

reply to post by dreamseeker


sorry for three posts in a row like this but damn this really burns me up!!!! they should either (A) not adopt the child until they are stable and have a place big enough and have ebough money to provide for the child.(B) Move to somewhere where it isnt so freaking expansive to live i live int he usa and you can rent a 3 bedroom house here for less than 500 a month. (C) He should stop whining about his back and get job my back is horrible and so are my knees the doctors tell me i cannot work untill i have surgery but i dont have 20k to pay for a surgey because i cant find a job.(D) She should hurry and find a job at minimum wage atleast and then get a second job. seriously doubt his back is so bad he cant sit and greet people at walmart or secretary work or order taker for fastfood drive through where the sit in a chair at a computer all and talk through a headset. nothing gets me as erked as people who get disability and stuff handed to them and then want more which takes money from the people who work and need money just as bad or if not more. i am really getting sick and freaking tired of this country it is going down the tube and fast!

In 2003 I separated from my son's dad and moved into an apartment complex that was government subsidized. Basically they went by my income to determine my rent. My son was only 9 months old and they made me get a 2 bedroom. Said it was the law. It cost more money, but it didn't matter, I needed a place to live so I got a second job. It was hard, at first, but 7 years later we are out of that housing and living where I don't have to tell anyone how much I make, or don't make. It can be done. I think your "friend" needs to try harder at focusing on what's important. Which for me, and lots of others, it's generating enough income to take care of our family. Bottom line - get a job, get a 2nd job, get a 3rd job. Don't rely on the government and if you do - DON"T MAKE IT A WAY OF LIFE!!! Please!!!!

reply to post by dreamseeker


I'm sorry, but if your friend doesn't like it maybe she should get a job and move somewhere else. If her financial situation is that unstable, perhaps taking in a foster child and supporting a disabled person isn't the greatest idea.

I wish her all the luck in the world, but three to a room is perfectly fine for those freeloading.

I just wanted to chime in and say that if she truly has that much retail experience she should be able to get a job at a restaurant without much trouble.

If you are well spoken, at least moderately attractive (sorry folks, but its true) well put together and willing to put up with a certain amount of crap, and I assume she is since she worked retail, you can find a restaurant job.

Start somewhere easy, like a local lunch place, a casual family style place, or even fast food, just something to get some restaurant experience under belt, you only need a couple of months before you can move up to something more lucrative.

Likely she would have to start out as a hostess or even helping in the kitchen doing prep work. But if you are smart, show up early, are willing to do what needs to be done without being asked, and are drama free you will quickly be moved to the floor waiting tables.

Right now I run a lunch counter in the bottom of an office building, it is less money than waiting tables, but I don't have a staff or boss to worry about and the hours work for us. It is a luxury that we can afford right now. So instead of mostly tips I get a higher hourly salary plus whatever tips i get in the jar. Even on a bad 150 dollar day I leave with at least 10 bucks in tips. That is tax free and pays for incidentals.

But when I worked at a hot spot that served mostly beer and crap food I could easily bring in 6-800 in a weekend. I might end up picking up some shifts at a neighborhood bar just for a little extra money, serving drinks comes with more BS but also much better tips.
At a high end club or restaurant I could probably close to double that on a good weekend.

It is HARD work.
To make that money I was in constant motion for 10-12 hours a day, and you have to be able to keep a smile on your face no matter what happens. You have to be able to improvise and juggle 10 tasks at once. But if you are good at it, you can make pretty decent money for a job that doesn't require any education.

Restaurants have incredibly high turnover rates, they are always hiring, she needs to put on a pair of black pants, a cute shirt and hit the streets filling out as many applications as she can.

Corporate chains often offer benefits, but in my experience locally owned places are a better environment with less hoops to jump through.

reply to post by dreamseeker


I had to do a bit of investigating because of differing laws concerning how many bedrooms for a family. Yada yada, whatever... I asked for a few examples of how this housing situation could happen. The public housing and welfare assistance people I spoke to several different county workers in 15 different states ALL said the same thing.

What I found out is that there is no way any state would put a child over the age of three in the same bedroom as a couple for a permanent residence unless 1) It was temporary arrangement until something more appropriate came up or 2) 18 people in 9 different states claim that your friend did not report her boyfriend being a member of the household.

They all wanted her name and address so they could investigate either the failing of their system or the potential welfare fraud. I hope this helps the next time you talk to your friend if she is still in the same situation:

You can let her know the next time she complains about her living arrangement that she may be able to get a two bedroom if her boyfriend is willing to put his name on the application, and if he already applied jointly with her, she just has to wait until a two bedroom becomes available and 15 states claim they are scratching their heads why she isn't already in one. There is NO WAY she is going to get a three bedroom under the federal housing rules in 15 states and I can almost be certain this applies to the rest of the USA since it is a federally funded housing program with pretty close to the same rules in every state!

I have phone numbers to get your friend the help she needs if you want to contact me privately. But if she is committing a fraud by not including her boyfriend on the application, there is no help because the social program expects her to share a room with her daughter..PERIOD! if there is no man in the house. Under that circumstance, a one bedroom is appropriate and the only conspiracy is in the information your friend is not giving.

reply to post by peggy m


I did some more checking about the rules governing housing for a pending adoption. In this case, I contacted (indirectly) 33 state social workers in charge of foster children welfare and they are saying the exact same thing. Heads are going to roll!

Your friend must show that she can provide a stable and financially secure environment...PERIOD! If your friend is seriously down on her luck, she no longer qualifies for foster placement and the agency official in charge of her case is in some serious trouble for slacking off on the job.

A child pending adoption or a child in foster care must have a room separate from the parents...PERIOD! Those are the rules and that is all there is to it.

The social welfare housing program does not make special considerations when you apply as a single mother living with a man. Regardless of your friend's boyfriend's religious beliefs, the welfare program is going to treat the couple living together as a couple sharing a bedroom and the woman as a mother to a same sex child.

So far, every person I spoke with is confident that your fried, had she jointly applied for housing with all adults in the household would have gotten a two bedroom house or apartment; one for the child and one for the couple. Unfortunately, they all feel she failed to alert the foster care advocate when her financial and housing situation changed.

One woman I spoke with, who happens to be a 20 year veteran of the homes for children program in Illinois and a very good friend of mine, tells me your friend is pulling the wool over my eyes otherwise one of her peers needs to be fired. "There is no way in hell the child would be left in that environment" is what my friend told me.

Long story short, my friend Bev, is stirring up a bees nest and she won't rest until every foster placement is contacted and investigated. Don't worry too much, she is just a peon social worker with a very limited amount of strings to pull. Just know that this is a serious matter and the system failed on two fronts.

That IS what your friend wanted, right? I sure hope so because if she is scamming the system, she is going to be caught if she happens to live in Bev's area and may have to pay for it big time. On the other hand, if her claim is legit and she followed all those social rules, she will get the two bedroom she needs and some spankings are going to be dished out toward social workers that allowed the one bedroom situation to happen to a foster child.

In my search for info, it kind of got out of my hands. I did not realize how serious this sort of accusation was until I tried to help you help your friend. Apparently, this is pretty heavy accusation on my part to hand over to a friend of mine. I just hope your friend was worth the mess I have just created for my friend to correct a problem that may or may not exist!




[edit on 16-7-2010 by peggy m]

reply to post by peggy m


I was reading some of my old posts and I noticed I left this whole issue unresolve. I am just updating about the whole situation.
My friend moved into a one bedroom with a den. Apperently they had a few of those in the public housing unit. Due to the lawyer they made exception for her and let her move there. The den has a door and a small closet. She adopted the child alone as a single parent. They located the father and he was in prison; probably would never get out. He was happy to give up his rights. She now hangs out with people who don't do any drugs;(like me); and has made better choices in friends.
My friend's finace is my gfs brother by the way so he moved in with his sister. He finally got over her being gay. His father also lives with her as well. The father disowned her but now he decided what was more important. My friends and everyone is helping her put together a nice wedding in spring.
It turned out what happened was a prejudice by one manager there who is no longer there. An apology was given to her and now she is on a list for a 2 bedroom apartment but she is fine with the one bedroom and den. She has a part time job as a manager at dollar tree. Things have improved was my point. Thats all I wanted to say so case closed.
No one needs to reply and this thread can be closed but I really wanted people to know the outcome. I feel I tired so hard to get sympathy from people that it was unfair to not post the outcome. I am sorry about that. I am slowly evolving here on ATS.

reply to post by hotpinkurinalmint


I VERY MUCH agree with you!!

One thing that is really happening (with welfare) is that section 8 voucher carriers are able to be choicey about their taxed-payed for homes:

"This one does not have the vaulted ceilings that I like...next house please."

"Where is the fireplace? Next house please."

"I need a 2 car-garage, thank you...Next house please."

Welfare no longer has the negative connotation that it once carried. In fact, this class lives better than the working class, and most feel absolutely no shame about it whatsoever.