It is said that most people are just two paychecks away from becoming Homeless.

Most people think it can`t happen to them and they live their lives accordingly. Yet statistics show that it can and does happen to people who live paycheck to paycheck.

Question is, if people can`t avoid the unexpected then doesn`t it benefit them to help put Community Programs in place to help anyone (including themselves) in case of an unexpected housing emergency?

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Hi, Donna, et al.! Thank you for again inviting me to join, even though I was already a member.

Thirteen years ago I was homeless and lived out of my car for two years. I can almost hear the reactions of some reading this. Many people react like, "Oh, that person must be a schitzophrenic or otherwise mentally ill". Not me. In my case, all it took was for a so-called "Christian" (Catholic) landlord to not let me look for a new roommate when ONE didn't work out, after I had invested $1,650.00 that I was barely able to come up with (and couldn't find any permanent work, and worked "temp") for the first and last months rent and deposit when my "Primary Tenant" first-roommate moved out and I became the Primary Tenant (before the roommate who didn't work out). Sure, eventually (like thirty-days later or so as usual) I got the deposit back as I recall), but by then it was too late. I had already had to move out, and the only place I had to go was to live out of my car and camp out; and, since the local campgrounds charged too much money, I had to drive hundreds of miles to the National Forests where I could find free campgrounds to stay at. So I made the rounds of a series of campgrounds in order to not over-stay the maximum stay at each one, though I was able to come back to them eventually.

God really protected me, and I never had any major problems. In fact, only one did a ranger-cop come see me to ask me what my status was; and that was because I had applied for Medicaide and Food Stamps in a certain county and, having told the worker that I was homeless and camping out, she turned me in because of paranoia that I was "living" in one of the campgrounds, the one I of course had to tell her where I was staying, and where the ranger-cop came to see me. The worker illegally turned me down for assistance even though I had a local Post Office Box; but I never had trouble getting such assistance in other areas (one area at a time---I never tried to commit fraud and obtain benefits in more than one locale at the same time; and I never would.

After that incident, I just moved on to a different area where there was a series of free campgrounds I could cycle between, and where I applied and received assistance. I didn't know yet that I was (am) physically disabled with ME/CFIDS and Fibromyalgia (FMS), so I wasn't on Social Security Disability yet, and the only money I had to live on was Unemployment Benefits and the Social Services, but I finally got on the very low (equivalent to my very low Unemployment Benefits) State disability. I didn't know about government-subsidized housing until well into the homelessness (about a year I guess), and I applied but the waiting lists were really long and/or they discriminated against me because I was homeless, though I always presented myself very clean and clean-cut, and kept passing me over on the waiting lists or found some "excuse" for denying me eligibility when I came to the top. Homeless people were supposed to receive a federal preference over others' on the waiting lists; but, if their credit is bad, as mine was and it is to be expected that it will be with homeless people, they use that and/or lack of rental references as excuses not to rent to you, even in government-subsidized housing! I don't know how many time, to this day, that I have "argued" that and the fact that it shouldn't be used against extremely low income people who are bound to have bad credit or no credit at all; but many of the managers and/or property management companies and/or owners of these government-subsidized apartments and/or houses have little or no compassion, even if one's previous rental references are excellent; and the government allows them to turn down "such people", including the homeless, for such reasons! It's a travesty; but, other than lobbying, what can you do?

After two years, I finally got on SSDI and SSI, and got into my first government-subsidized apartment, and I've been living in them every since. Once one has the slightly higher Social Security, the landlords are more likely to rent to you, especially because they cannot legally descriminate for being disabled and turn you down for subsidized housing then, though they can still use the lack of rental references and/or credit against you. (My retired mother living in subsidized apartments got me in to her complex.) Now I have excellent rental references, though my credit's still shot, and some complexes I want to move to every two or three years or more will still deny me because of the credit; and because I'm an Equal, Human, Civil, Legal, Disability, Housing, and Tenant rights advocate and stand up against abuses of landlords, most of whom are crooks, and for improvements in the projects, some of them will give me bad rental references in illegal retaliation trying to keep me from moving and/or renting another subsidized apartment someplace else, which is what I'm dealing with right now.

The government agencies that are supposed to protect the disabled and/or tenants in government-subsidized housing usually protect the business interests, the owners and management, even if they're violating the law. Oh, sure, the present site managers may get fired, but the owners and/or management will get a new "manager" who will completely do what they're told by the owners and/or property management firms even if it's illegal, and the cycle perpetuates itself over and over again. And, of course, tenants like myself who stand up against illegality and/or other wrongs, and stand up for nothing but what is right, are denegrated as complaining too much and being troublemakers. Most people in "America" don't understand legal and/or civil rights and just don't get it, thinking that we should just be grateful for even poorly kept up housing and "shut up"....

We are usually about 2 pay checks away from being homeless, maybe less! If it weren't for my husbands "side jobs" we'd be even worse off.

When I was little we were VERY poor. Luckily, my grandparents (from my mothers side) would help enough to allow us to keep our house. But, I went with out meals a lot more than a few times in my life. When I was little I had this pretend food called air pudding and wind sauce when I got hungry and there was nothing to eat.

As far as the government assistance goes, it is getting harder and harder to get help. My mom is on disability and food stamps. My husband and I aren't, we can't even get on the state health insurance since they usually close their doors to adults so that they have enough funding for the children (our daughter is on it at least).

I have had both friends and family who were homeless and have moved in with my family and I have come very close to being homeless but have never had to truly experience it myself. The closest I've come was 2 nights sleeping in a car with my dad when he took us to Washington to march in a pro-life parade (his choice not ours). And sleeping out in the streets and from house to house during my very hard core "partying"/ running away from home days of my youth.

~natalie~

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Now you`re reminding me of when I was little and feeling fortunate to have ketchup or mustard sandwiches or a folded over sugar & butter sandwich (my Dad used to eat sugar & lard as he was raised on them). I visited a childhood friends house once and was amazed to see them eating thick layers of cheese and meat on their sandwiches for lunch. Who knew? I didn`t even realize I was deprived until I saw that.

P.S. Have you been back to Anon, Natalie? I can`t tell cuz everyones invisible there.

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I did the ketchup sandwhich thing too. One time my mom was depressed and didn't make food (although we had some in the house at the time) I took uncooked roman noodles out of the package and dipped it in cold tomato sauce *yuck*

I know what you mean, when you are little and raised a certain way, you don't know any better. 

I have been reading threads in anon but haven't posted anything lately.

     Thanks

         ~natalie~

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Don't mention it

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Most people are one pay check away from being homeless.

in a lot of areas, like in san francisco where i am at now and in western oregon where i moved from, the wages don't match the cost of living. MOst single parents have a harder time to make it and often are the first one to be in the street if one loses her job or whatever.

TOugh times.

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No doubt. One paycheck or two, it`s too darn close!

Some people have family and friends to fall back on so they think everyone does but unfortunately due to the extremely high cost of living everywhere, even family and friends are struggling to keep their own lives intact so have little to no means for helping even if they want to.

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