First off, I am not here to offend anyone who has in the past or currently is under support from Section 8 housing. I am simply trying to get opinion's on if getting an apartment in Los Angeles that accepts section 8 is generally a good or bad idea. From what I gather online, it has the main criticism of allowing criminals to be more evenly distributed throughout cities.

From the looks of pictures and ads online, the apartments seem fairly priced and are tempting, but many of them say they accept Section 8. Does anyone have personal experience in living in such places?

 

I have served as an executive director of a public housing authority. Section 8 is a means of providing low income housing to qualified individuals. HUD is no longer building public housing units (except in some cases, as replacement). Section 8 is a more cost effective way of providing this assistance. Further, it avoids concentrating low income groups in just one part of the community. As an executive director, I would not allow anyone with a felony conviction to live in our housing, except in well documented cases of rehab. In Section 8, you will have a greater variety of housing and locations from which to chose. Your part of the rent is based on your income. The housing authority pays the difference (the rent is based on the rent rates in that community). By chosing to live in public assisted housing, you are afforded an opportunity to get yourself on your feet so you can eventually move out and live on your own. Some housing authorities (mine did) allow a certain amount of the occupant's rent payment to go into a savings account to be used to make a downpayment on their own home.

Now the real bad news: there are now many more individuals and families in need of assistance than the Great Depression. Waiting times are probably very long.

Good luck.

 

I can guarantee you a higher crime rate in any section 8 area. Thats one place I would avoid if I were you. I guess the old adage "you get what you pay for" comes into effect fairly strong here. a section 8 announcement for your neighborhood also destroys property value. People wouldn't be depending on the government for their housing if they would have made better decisions.





just my opinion.

 

It's been a long time ago for me and I don't think they called it section 8 back them. I think it was just "subsidized housing". I moved in because of the price not knowing it was subsidized housing. This wasn't in LA, it was on West Oak Ridge Road in Orlando between OBT and Orange for those that know the area. In the time I lived there I knew three people who were murdered, and the 7 people who were charged with the murders. There were several other murders in the complex of people I didn't know. The guy that lived next door to me almost died after being stabbed several times by an unknown attacker. It wasn't really all that unusual to see people having sex in the open, hell, even in the middle of the street. I had a guy come at me with a speargun but thankfully I got away and he never pulled the trigger. A hookers front door was no more than 20 feet from my front door and she often brought "john's" home and serviced them with all of her windows open while her husband sat outside the bedroom window listening to the moans. Drugs were everywhere, fights very common, and gunshots not unusual. I could go on for hours about the stuff that happened there.

Your experience may be different but I would not want to ever go back to that life. When I drove into the place a couple of years after leaving it almost made me puke to think that I had lived in those conditions. Make no mistake, there were some good people that lived there. Most however were lowlife scum working the system.

 

Thanks everyone for their input. Retvet, I now have a better understanding on how Section 8 actually works, so thanks. ChefJ and CG thanks also for sharing your experiences. I know that such bad circumstances arent' universal, but I do think that if it is too good to be true for the price, than it probably is. Since my budget is not terribly constrained, I'll go ahead and look at other options as well. Thanks everyone.

 

Don't assume because section 8 are given to low income single mothers mostly that does not mean felons are not roaming around. I bought into a new construction townhome complex in a nice suburb and someone bought several units and rented them out as section 8. Some single mothers moved in. Then their drug dealing gang member boyfriends moved in with them. The boyfriends were not supposed to be there, but who enforces it? One neighbor was threatened with a gun by one of the dealer's friends when he asked them to turn down the stereo in his Escalade when they were shooting baskets.

I sold, made a profit, and the whole place went to sh*T.

I think low income people need nice places to live, and opportunity, but it pays to spend as much as you can to get as far away from government programs as you can. It just attracts human flotsam like poop attracts flies. You are better offif there is gov subsidised ownership than gov subsidized rental. Subsidized renters DO NOT CARE ABOUT ANY PROPERTY AT ALL. The landlord's or yours.

 

I only have anecdotal evidence to offer, but I know that I used to live in a reasonably nice, affordable apartment complex. I had great neighbors and it was very safe. As soon as they started taking Section 8 residents (like seriously within 6 months), there were multiple reported break-ins, car thefts and even a double-homicide. The place has only gone downhill from there. I left and never looked back.

 

Ok so this is a very subjective question and subject, and I'll attempt to answer it as easily and blunt as possible.

Does moving into a complex that accepts section 8 users, inherently bad, and a guaranteed bad living experience? Absolutely not.

Does moving into a complex that accept section 8 users, have a higher probability for crime such as theft, or noise violations? Unfortunately yes.

It's a gamble and all we can suggest is do a little research, and follow your gut. Perhaps contact your local PD and find out what (if any) crims have been reported in say the last 12 months. Are they non-personal/motivated crimes such as random theft? Or were they deliberately targeted crimes, due to say an argument?

 

I just don't think that gambling with your life is worth saving a few bucks every month.

 

Where's Scot (and Tasty) when you need him?

To the OP: search the OT posts by Scot. Have fun.