Has anyone rented to a section 8 tenant or been a section 8 renter?

[Anonymous]

We purchased a section 8 4 unit rental property on the Hill. It took 5 months total to get all of the tenants out, because DC law can be manipulated easily by people who know how to massage it and/or it happened to be Winter.

The building was a crack/whore house, with a huge phone sex call center installed in one of the units (back in the day of 900 numbers and no internet). The guy who caused most of the issues was disabled. He unit was urine soaked through the floorboards. It was also rat infested.

It is now worth $850,000. Honestly, I don't know if it was worth the psychic hell it took on us to do something like that again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We purchased a section 8 4 unit rental property on the Hill. It took 5 months total to get all of the tenants out, because DC law can be manipulated easily by people who know how to massage it and/or it happened to be Winter.

The building was a crack/whore house, with a huge phone sex call center installed in one of the units (back in the day of 900 numbers and no internet). The guy who caused most of the issues was disabled. He unit was urine soaked through the floorboards. It was also rat infested.

It is now worth $850,000. Honestly, I don't know if it was worth the psychic hell it took on us to do something like that again.

Photos?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in one of the nicer 22101 neighborhoods - off GP - and we recently rented out the entire walk-out basement of our 7500 + sq ft house to our housekeeper, her husband, and their three children - who are section 8 tenants. It is a win-win for everyone. They live in a great neighborhood, and will send their children to the Ch-C-L pyramid, and we have a live-in handyman and housekeeper available at night, when they have finished their outside jobs. I think one of our neighbors is starting to get suspicious, and I am certain that they neighborhood would not generally approve, but the family needed a place to live and are truly great people.

Is this a troll post? It is not legal to rent out rooms in your house in SFH neighborhoods, unless you are in a "multifamily" zone.

Has to be. Section 8 comes out and physically inspects the unit so they would notice.

Maybe PP's housekeeper WAS a Sec 8 renter and now she just rents from PP at the Sec 8 rate instead

Yes, we rent out our walk-out basement at less-than what this lovely family used to pay under Section 8. The mother had been our once-weekly housekeeper for years, when her family ran into some issue with their Section 8 housing. She asked me if they could please move in for a few weeks until they could remedy the situation, but it worked out well and they asked to stay for a year. The family is from Guatemala, here legally, and I am a different Latin American nationality, so we get along well. Any work done by our housekeeper or her husband is paid by us at rate of $23/ hr. We also agree to babysit her children once a week for free, so that she and her husband can have a night out. We always pay them, however, if they sit for our child. I am glad that our house sits back behind a wall of landscaping, because I can sense that there is a good deal of disapproval from this thread.

So, allowable or not, let me fast forward how this can play out over several years. I am from a wealthy town similar to McLean. More people have domestic help than not. And all of the residents of the town who have domestic allowed their help to use the address and enroll their kids in the schools whether they live-in or not. I'm pretty sure I don't have to tell you test scores went wayyyyy down, the entire school system is in jeopardy now - where it used to be a top school system, it's now sub-par. PP would be a contributor to a similar type of situation. The schools you so highly covet might become crap, and you'll have to pay to send your kid to private. Good luck tinkering with the system.

I am sorry, but I do not believe your "tall", "cautionary" tale at all. I know of barely any local household with live-in help, so you will forgive me if I do not believe that you live in a town full of such households. DH, DC, and I live in a 7600+ sq. foot house valued at three to four times the average home in the 22101 zip code, and therefore pay three to four times more in property taxes than the average McLean homeowner. Our housekeeper's children come home to their mother, who works at our house after school tidying up and helping me with errands. You would not complain if a household paying a third of our property taxes sent their six children to the local schools. Since we only have one child, please do not complain if we also help our housekeeper send her children. I am glad that I have not confided in our neighbors and close friends (who know that we have a housekeeper, but not a live-in one). I am disheartened by the thinly-veiled discrimination on this thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Definitely watch this video. The guy makes a great point. The renter was unable to come up with the $53 in rent each month bc she was struggling to pay the power bill, and other bills. Also, she didn't report major damage. I am guessing bc she wouldn't want to be kicked out during a renovation or found at fault. He also says he moved to evict but the govt stepped in and stopped it at least once.

[Anonymous]

OMG. Nightmarish.

[Anonymous]

I'm affiliated with a social service organization in VA. My experience with Section 8 clients is that their life situation is precarious. Yes, they are working poor living in an area with a high cost of living, but they quite literally live from paycheck to paycheck and one unexpected expense, one health issue causes a major catastrophe.

My organization provides relatively small emergency funds to clients (majority are section 8) to assist with groceries, utilities or medical bills.

Yes, your rent will be paid on time, but perhaps utilities will not...or, your tenant will scrape together enough to pay rent and utilities, but then will not have any money left to fill the car with enough gas to get to her part time job and so will miss a few days of work until we get her some money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm affiliated with a social service organization in VA. My experience with Section 8 clients is that their life situation is precarious. Yes, they are working poor living in an area with a high cost of living, but they quite literally live from paycheck to paycheck and one unexpected expense, one health issue causes a major catastrophe.

My organization provides relatively small emergency funds to clients (majority are section 8) to assist with groceries, utilities or medical bills.

Yes, your rent will be paid on time, but perhaps utilities will not...or, your tenant will scrape together enough to pay rent and utilities, but then will not have any money left to fill the car with enough gas to get to her part time job and so will miss a few days of work until we get her some money.

This is a risk you take with many tenants, Section 8 or not unfortunately. Most people are one medical bill, layoff, or unexpected circumstance away from being able to meet their rent or mortgage. The advantage with Section 8 is that the HUD portion of the rent is always guaranteed, on-time, direct deposit. Also, HUD in most cases pays above-mark rate for the units, so a landlord can make more than they would on the open market even with the risk they take.

[Anonymous]

Interesting thread on a market not usually addressed on this forum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Interesting thread on a market not usually addressed on this forum.

The posters on DCUM generally care more about the $3 MM+ market than the Section 8 market. Not a judgment, just a fact.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Definitely watch this video. The guy makes a great point. The renter was unable to come up with the $53 in rent each month bc she was struggling to pay the power bill, and other bills. Also, she didn't report major damage. I am guessing bc she wouldn't want to be kicked out during a renovation or found at fault. He also says he moved to evict but the govt stepped in and stopped it at least once.

Wow! What an animal!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in one of the nicer 22101 neighborhoods - off GP - and we recently rented out the entire walk-out basement of our 7500 + sq ft house to our housekeeper, her husband, and their three children - who are section 8 tenants. It is a win-win for everyone. They live in a great neighborhood, and will send their children to the Ch-C-L pyramid, and we have a live-in handyman and housekeeper available at night, when they have finished their outside jobs. I think one of our neighbors is starting to get suspicious, and I am certain that they neighborhood would not generally approve, but the family needed a place to live and are truly great people.

Is this a troll post? It is not legal to rent out rooms in your house in SFH neighborhoods, unless you are in a "multifamily" zone.

Has to be. Section 8 comes out and physically inspects the unit so they would notice.

Maybe PP's housekeeper WAS a Sec 8 renter and now she just rents from PP at the Sec 8 rate instead

Yes, we rent out our walk-out basement at less-than what this lovely family used to pay under Section 8. The mother had been our once-weekly housekeeper for years, when her family ran into some issue with their Section 8 housing. She asked me if they could please move in for a few weeks until they could remedy the situation, but it worked out well and they asked to stay for a year. The family is from Guatemala, here legally, and I am a different Latin American nationality, so we get along well. Any work done by our housekeeper or her husband is paid by us at rate of $23/ hr. We also agree to babysit her children once a week for free, so that she and her husband can have a night out. We always pay them, however, if they sit for our child. I am glad that our house sits back behind a wall of landscaping, because I can sense that there is a good deal of disapproval from this thread.

So, allowable or not, let me fast forward how this can play out over several years. I am from a wealthy town similar to McLean. More people have domestic help than not. And all of the residents of the town who have domestic allowed their help to use the address and enroll their kids in the schools whether they live-in or not. I'm pretty sure I don't have to tell you test scores went wayyyyy down, the entire school system is in jeopardy now - where it used to be a top school system, it's now sub-par. PP would be a contributor to a similar type of situation. The schools you so highly covet might become crap, and you'll have to pay to send your kid to private. Good luck tinkering with the system.

I am sorry, but I do not believe your "tall", "cautionary" tale at all. I know of barely any local household with live-in help, so you will forgive me if I do not believe that you live in a town full of such households. DH, DC, and I live in a 7600+ sq. foot house valued at three to four times the average home in the 22101 zip code, and therefore pay three to four times more in property taxes than the average McLean homeowner. Our housekeeper's children come home to their mother, who works at our house after school tidying up and helping me with errands. You would not complain if a household paying a third of our property taxes sent their six children to the local schools. Since we only have one child, please do not complain if we also help our housekeeper send her children. I am glad that I have not confided in our neighbors and close friends (who know that we have a housekeeper, but not a live-in one). I am disheartened by the thinly-veiled discrimination on this thread.

It's not about number of bodies in a school, it's about who is going to that school. I'm sure everyone in McLean would be clutching their pearls if they showed up at their school in the fall to find that it was filled with kids of local household help.

You can keep telling yourself that you're the good one, you're the bleeding heart. But you showed your true colors with your bragging. You're doing the little people a favor because you have a house 3x the size of anyone else. LOL. You are pathetic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in one of the nicer 22101 neighborhoods - off GP - and we recently rented out the entire walk-out basement of our 7500 + sq ft house to our housekeeper, her husband, and their three children - who are section 8 tenants. It is a win-win for everyone. They live in a great neighborhood, and will send their children to the Ch-C-L pyramid, and we have a live-in handyman and housekeeper available at night, when they have finished their outside jobs. I think one of our neighbors is starting to get suspicious, and I am certain that they neighborhood would not generally approve, but the family needed a place to live and are truly great people.

Is this a troll post? It is not legal to rent out rooms in your house in SFH neighborhoods, unless you are in a "multifamily" zone.

Has to be. Section 8 comes out and physically inspects the unit so they would notice.

Maybe PP's housekeeper WAS a Sec 8 renter and now she just rents from PP at the Sec 8 rate instead

Yes, we rent out our walk-out basement at less-than what this lovely family used to pay under Section 8. The mother had been our once-weekly housekeeper for years, when her family ran into some issue with their Section 8 housing. She asked me if they could please move in for a few weeks until they could remedy the situation, but it worked out well and they asked to stay for a year. The family is from Guatemala, here legally, and I am a different Latin American nationality, so we get along well. Any work done by our housekeeper or her husband is paid by us at rate of $23/ hr. We also agree to babysit her children once a week for free, so that she and her husband can have a night out. We always pay them, however, if they sit for our child. I am glad that our house sits back behind a wall of landscaping, because I can sense that there is a good deal of disapproval from this thread.

So, allowable or not, let me fast forward how this can play out over several years. I am from a wealthy town similar to McLean. More people have domestic help than not. And all of the residents of the town who have domestic allowed their help to use the address and enroll their kids in the schools whether they live-in or not. I'm pretty sure I don't have to tell you test scores went wayyyyy down, the entire school system is in jeopardy now - where it used to be a top school system, it's now sub-par. PP would be a contributor to a similar type of situation. The schools you so highly covet might become crap, and you'll have to pay to send your kid to private. Good luck tinkering with the system.

I am sorry, but I do not believe your "tall", "cautionary" tale at all. I know of barely any local household with live-in help, so you will forgive me if I do not believe that you live in a town full of such households. DH, DC, and I live in a 7600+ sq. foot house valued at three to four times the average home in the 22101 zip code, and therefore pay three to four times more in property taxes than the average McLean homeowner. Our housekeeper's children come home to their mother, who works at our house after school tidying up and helping me with errands. You would not complain if a household paying a third of our property taxes sent their six children to the local schools. Since we only have one child, please do not complain if we also help our housekeeper send her children. I am glad that I have not confided in our neighbors and close friends (who know that we have a housekeeper, but not a live-in one). I am disheartened by the thinly-veiled discrimination on this thread.

It's not about number of bodies in a school, it's about who is going to that school. I'm sure everyone in McLean would be clutching their pearls if they showed up at their school in the fall to find that it was filled with kids of local household help.

You can keep telling yourself that you're the good one, you're the bleeding heart. But you showed your true colors with your bragging. You're doing the little people a favor because you have a house 3x the size of anyone else. LOL. You are pathetic.

Did I say the town was in DC? No. I said I am from a wealthy town like McLean. It's not in this area. It's 100% true. The schools are now a mess.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We purchased a section 8 4 unit rental property on the Hill. It took 5 months total to get all of the tenants out, because DC law can be manipulated easily by people who know how to massage it and/or it happened to be Winter.

The building was a crack/whore house, with a huge phone sex call center installed in one of the units (back in the day of 900 numbers and no internet). The guy who caused most of the issues was disabled. He unit was urine soaked through the floorboards. It was also rat infested.

It is now worth $850,000. Honestly, I don't know if it was worth the psychic hell it took on us to do something like that again.

Photos?

I will have to look for those, they are somewhere! The stench is still a vivid memory. The phone unit weighed about 80 pounds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OMG. Nightmarish.

I know. I actually wanted to cry on the guy's behalf!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in one of the nicer 22101 neighborhoods - off GP - and we recently rented out the entire walk-out basement of our 7500 + sq ft house to our housekeeper, her husband, and their three children - who are section 8 tenants. It is a win-win for everyone. They live in a great neighborhood, and will send their children to the Ch-C-L pyramid, and we have a live-in handyman and housekeeper available at night, when they have finished their outside jobs. I think one of our neighbors is starting to get suspicious, and I am certain that they neighborhood would not generally approve, but the family needed a place to live and are truly great people.

Is this a troll post? It is not legal to rent out rooms in your house in SFH neighborhoods, unless you are in a "multifamily" zone.

Has to be. Section 8 comes out and physically inspects the unit so they would notice.

Maybe PP's housekeeper WAS a Sec 8 renter and now she just rents from PP at the Sec 8 rate instead

Yes, we rent out our walk-out basement at less-than what this lovely family used to pay under Section 8. The mother had been our once-weekly housekeeper for years, when her family ran into some issue with their Section 8 housing. She asked me if they could please move in for a few weeks until they could remedy the situation, but it worked out well and they asked to stay for a year. The family is from Guatemala, here legally, and I am a different Latin American nationality, so we get along well. Any work done by our housekeeper or her husband is paid by us at rate of $23/ hr. We also agree to babysit her children once a week for free, so that she and her husband can have a night out. We always pay them, however, if they sit for our child. I am glad that our house sits back behind a wall of landscaping, because I can sense that there is a good deal of disapproval from this thread.

So, allowable or not, let me fast forward how this can play out over several years. I am from a wealthy town similar to McLean. More people have domestic help than not. And all of the residents of the town who have domestic allowed their help to use the address and enroll their kids in the schools whether they live-in or not. I'm pretty sure I don't have to tell you test scores went wayyyyy down, the entire school system is in jeopardy now - where it used to be a top school system, it's now sub-par. PP would be a contributor to a similar type of situation. The schools you so highly covet might become crap, and you'll have to pay to send your kid to private. Good luck tinkering with the system.

I am sorry, but I do not believe your "tall", "cautionary" tale at all. I know of barely any local household with live-in help, so you will forgive me if I do not believe that you live in a town full of such households. DH, DC, and I live in a 7600+ sq. foot house valued at three to four times the average home in the 22101 zip code, and therefore pay three to four times more in property taxes than the average McLean homeowner. Our housekeeper's children come home to their mother, who works at our house after school tidying up and helping me with errands. You would not complain if a household paying a third of our property taxes sent their six children to the local schools. Since we only have one child, please do not complain if we also help our housekeeper send her children. I am glad that I have not confided in our neighbors and close friends (who know that we have a housekeeper, but not a live-in one). I am disheartened by the thinly-veiled discrimination on this thread.

It's not about number of bodies in a school, it's about who is going to that school. I'm sure everyone in McLean would be clutching their pearls if they showed up at their school in the fall to find that it was filled with kids of local household help.

You can keep telling yourself that you're the good one, you're the bleeding heart. But you showed your true colors with your bragging. You're doing the little people a favor because you have a house 3x the size of anyone else. LOL. You are pathetic.

Did I say the town was in DC? No. I said I am from a wealthy town like McLean. It's not in this area. It's 100% true. The schools are now a mess.

Not PP. The PP you are responding to was calling the Latina bragger pathetic, not you.