There are hundreds of opportunities to live in your own place when you turn 55, but not all housing is created equal. Some options cost a mortgage payment each month and result in a long-term commitment, while others provide affordable housing with no long-term commitments.
Today’s article will explore subsidized senior living communities for those 55 years of age or older and offer a list of the best places to start looking around.
There are hundreds of opportunities to live in your own place when you turn 55, but not all housing is created equal. Some options cost a mortgage payment each month and result in a long-term commitment, while others provide affordable housing with no long-term commitments.
Today’s article will explore subsidized senior living communities for those 55 years of age or older and offer a list of the best places to start looking around.
Subsidized Senior Housing
Senior housing comes in many different types; from subsidized houses to apartments, and even condos and co-ops, there are plenty of options on the market. Subsidized housing is one of the more popular types as it offers affordable rent with no long-term commitment. This type of senior housing is based on a subsidy model provided by the government for low income seniors, where cost of living and site fees are reduced. There is no need for any type of HUD certification nor do you need to be approved by an organization to live in subsidized housing. All that is needed is proof of age (45 years or older) and a valid state identification or driver’s license.
To qualify for subsidized senior housing, you must meet the following criteria: a) You will be 55 years or older and b) You must earn no more than $12,000 per year.
The HUD Senior Housing page lists many subsidized senior communities available in the United States. These locations are also listed on the HUD Senior Web site
The FEMA Direct Supplemental Payments website provides current information on subsidized housing options in your state. This website includes all of the federally assisted programs in each state, including Section 202 and Section 8 which both provide limited income based subsidies to elderly renters and homeowners to help them afford rent and home expenses.
Make sure you know the difference between subsidized senior housing, subsidized housing and affordable senior housing. There are some very affordable senior living communities that offer high quality affordable senior housing units. For example, there are several different types of Senior Living Communities that include some very popular types of senior living communities such as low income apartments, assisted living facilities or independent living quarters. According to HUD, these communities offer a variety of community services to help tenants overcome their daily challenges; including health care, social activities and financial planning.
Affordable Senior Housing
Affordable senior housing for those 55+ years of age can be a very wise choice if you are behind on your rent or if you have debt and want to avoid a HUD foreclosure. There are many different options available in the United States. For example, there is HUD-funded assistance for low income seniors with this assistance program called the Section 8 Program which also provides subsidized senior housing in certain locations. This is another good option as it will assist seniors with paying reasonable amounts of rent and utilities including cost of living allowance. The Section 8 program also has set income limits that must be met before receiving an apartment through this program. This program will not cover rent, utilities and cost of living pay in urban areas, however it may cover these expenses in towns. Other subsidized senior housing options to consider include Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Veterans Administration (VA) and HUD Section 202 Housing Vouchers Program. All of these programs have income limits, but they do provide some assistance to low income senior citizens.