Does anyone know how senior subsidized housing works?

[Anonymous]

I have the list of several senior subsidized apartment complexes in the area my mom lives in NY from the HUD website, however, before I fill out the 14-page application for each complex, I want to verify that she qualifies for subsidized housing.

From my understanding from the HUD website:

"A subsidized housing unit is one in which a tenant pays approximately 30% of their adjusted income on rent and utilities..."

How is this calculated? Is it just based on her social security income? $1500 / month. She hasn't had any other income in 20 years. Does it matter if she owns/ is going to sell her house (net proceeds after mortgage will be less than $100k)? Does it matter how much she has in the bank (probably another $100k)?

Of course, I have tried calling many different HUD #s locally in her area and the national 800 number and cannot get a live person.

If you have BTDT, I'd appreciate any help you can offer.

[Anonymous]

To add a bit more context, I am looking for information on eligibility for SECTION 202 SUPPORTIVE HOUSING FOR THE ELDERLY PROGRAM, not section 8.

[Anonymous]

Does the county have a Housing Dept? I would start on a smaller scale than HUD.

[Anonymous]

Yes, I tried the county housing office but they only support government housing. Section 202 is privately owned apartment buildings that are either all senior subsidized or a portion senior subsidized. Since they are all independently owned, there is no main "housing authority" oversight that I have found (yet) but I'm still digging through HUD and other local websites.

[Anonymous]

Looking online, I think the income derived from the assets counts as income. Like the interest on the $100K. But I didn't see any asset limits for the 202 program.

[Anonymous]

I would be surprised if there aren’t asset limits for Section 202, on the same magnitude as SSI honestly. It’s for extremely low income individuals (below 50% of the average market income), and capacity is tight, and waiting lists are long.

At 18000/yr in income, she’s ineligible for SSI, so I would assume that she’s ineligible for 202.

There may be some private developments (that get other real estate incentives) that offer sliding-scale rents. I’d look into those.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would be surprised if there aren’t asset limits for Section 202, on the same magnitude as SSI honestly. It’s for extremely low income individuals (below 50% of the average market income), and capacity is tight, and waiting lists are long.

At 18000/yr in income, she’s ineligible for SSI, so I would assume that she’s ineligible for 202.

There may be some private developments (that get other real estate incentives) that offer sliding-scale rents. I’d look into those.

I’d also reach out to your local ACL office (formerly AOA).

https://acl.gov/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would be surprised if there aren’t asset limits for Section 202, on the same magnitude as SSI honestly. It’s for extremely low income individuals (below 50% of the average market income), and capacity is tight, and waiting lists are long.

At 18000/yr in income, she’s ineligible for SSI, so I would assume that she’s ineligible for 202.

There may be some private developments (that get other real estate incentives) that offer sliding-scale rents. I’d look into those.

I’d also reach out to your local ACL office (formerly AOA).

https://acl.gov/

One more resource. Here’s where you can see all the properties that received federal support (like LIHTC) that are required to offer subsidized rents.

Go to “find affordable rents”: https://www.hud.gov/topics/information_for_senior_citizens
https://eldercare.acl.gov/Public/Resources/LearnMoreAbout/Housing.aspx