The Intersection of Social Security Income and Affordable Housing for People with Disabilities
It is no surprise that lack of affordable housing is directly linked to homelessness for many Virginians. The Technical Assistance Collaborative, Inc. (TAC) and the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) recently released their national study, Priced Out in 2010, which presents the severe lack of affordable housing for people with disabilities. Comparing payments from federal Social Security Insurance (SSI) for persons with “significant and long-term disabilities” with that of HUD’s definition of Fair Market Rents, the study found that across the United States there is a large discrepancy in affordable housing for persons with disabilities. In Virginia, SSI benefits in 2010 totaled $674 per month which equals 15.6% of the area median income. HUD standards define affordable housing as no more than 30% of one’s income.
Therefore, a person receiving SSI would be paying anywhere from 118 % – 131% of their monthly income for an efficiency apartment or a one-bedroom apartment. Perhaps what is most shocking is the report’s findings on SSI payments as compared with hourly wages, “A person with a disability receiving SSI payments in Virginia had income equivalent to an hourly wage of $3.89, $3.36 less than the federal minimum wage of $7.25. In 2010, a person had to earn $17.05 per hour to be able to afford a one-bedroom rental unit based on HUD's Fair Market Rent.”
"This study makes it crystal clear why vulnerable people with disabilities become homeless or remain unnecessarily in high cost institutional settings," said Ann O'Hara of the Technical Assistance Collaborative, who co-authored the study. For more information.
