A Way To Tackle The Homeless Problem?

Interesting solution to tackle the homeless problem. Say, your County pays to put a tiny house in your backyard. In return, you the owner must allow a homeless family to live there for 5 years. After that, you can do whatever you want with it, even rent it out.

http://mynorthwest.com/580993/seattle-backyard-regulations/

All housing problems are caused by bad government regulations. .period, end of story…

Gotta try something…I am sick and tired of seeing tents on public streets and sidewalks.

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I don’t agree with the idea that they all deserve a private residency with their own kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, etc. That makes it VERY expensive to deal with it. Why not build military style barracks? It’d be a fraction of the cost. There will be people that’ll complain those living conditions aren’t good enough. I guess that means they think homeless people are entitlement to free housing that’s better than the housing for our military?

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Well, this way, this gets the homeowners’ skin in the game and presumably keeps the government mostly out. Isn’t that preferred?

Remember, most homeless have some combination of: alcoholism, drug addiction, mental illness, and/or criminal record. Do you want those people living your backyard?

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I took my daughter to visit the Tech Museum in San Jose. We all went there, the 4 of us. The parking lot is under Hwy 87. On our way back, I couldn’t stop feeling somehow disgusted and happy at the same time. There he was, a homeless guy with a cell phone. I could see he was either playing with it or charging it. No idea if he uses it for communication purposes, but I thought about it all the way back home.

Again, my apologies if I start a debate of some kind of immigrants against whatever. But I have noticed that there are some people, very young, on their late 30’s or 40’s at the corners asking for a handout. Are they stuck on a ritual that allows them to be free without the responsibilities of paying for housing and all the expenses the normal life bring to the normal Joe? Are they really walking around like zombies without any purpose in life? Are they really sick? What put them so down that they can’t perform as a normal citizen anymore?

Now, I’ve heard, anecdotal stories, that some employers have picked them up, or tried to pick them up to do, with the least the minimum effort a job/task but they run away. I also know of stories where they become the best workers ever.

Essentially, I think it is something about mental problems, and for that I don’t mean being crazy. When you are down, you are down and nothing can lift your spirit, no matter what. Being there, done that.

Really? Or was he a “almost homeless with family” guy with a cell phone?

There’s a guy named Chester who works a median in Palo Alto. When he’s on that median, he’s “Almost homeless with family.” When I saw him at Trader Joe’s, he was collecting for the “Save women and children” fund (which is almost certainly a fraud given the address they claim to operate from) wearing a nice shirt and slacks. Pulled out a very nice latest model iphone at some point and answered it saying “excuse me, it’s my wife.”

Because I take notice of the “homeless” people around me, I know the two are the same person.

Anyways, there are definitely some homeless guys, some beggars who need the money, but not quite homeless, and some not at all homeless guys who make a great living pretending to be. Question is how to tell the difference.

Not those of course, but say a single mom with a kid maybe. I don’t see any real harm with that. Have to be sober and drug free. My lil sis, actually took in a homeless older woman she met at the public library. She allows her to stay in the downstairs guest room occasionally. I initially had some qualms about it (since my sis has kids) but I have to hand it to her. She doesn’t just talk a good game, she actually does it.

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He was homeless for sure, his clothing scattered around. The light from the phone gave him away.

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I’m surprised a single mom with a kid could end up homeless. It should be relatively easy to qualify for section 8. Almost all social programs are designed to benefit single moms. All that’s happened since we did that is out of wedlock births went from 8% to 40%. Also, poverty rates for single parents are 5-6 times higher than married parents. Remind me again how the evil rich cause poverty…

Not sure if Alameda County is indicative of everywhere else, but I seem to recall that the waiting list was long and, think about it, who in their right mind would accept it when you have such demand for housing? I currently have a few Sec 8 tenants from many years ago but I am trying to give them a sweetheart deal to move if they want to due to family or size needs.

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Personal responsibility is lacking or a declining moral standard.

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Section 8 wouldn’t cover rent in prime areas. They’d have to go further out where rent is more affordable.

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Most of the “homeless” in SF commute from Oakland

Not Chester.

I don’t need the government to pay for it. I am happy if the government let me alone and allow me to build it on my own. Some law makers in California is working on this and hope they will succeed.

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I hope he or she is not a darn liberal. They are executed in this forum. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

Now, a word of advise or warning. Many people here abhor the idea of restrictions and limitations on housing, you know, permits, and blah, blah, blah. But the results of nobody checking upon homeowners and investors in general when it comes to additions and whatnot is that we will have the likes of the Brazilian way of living. And for that, I can’t recall how they call to the poor sections of any city, Favelas or something like that. No oversight, lots of problems.

Got this picture online. No idea where, it was a topic on how funny some of the homeless signs are.

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Section 8 vouchers are given in an annual basis or not that frequent. And when they release them, it causes so much excitement and panic people would kill for one of them.

I think some landlords here can point at the root of the problem. Can you tell me why your section 8 tenants still have those vouchers after so many years? To me, to teach some fiscal or economic responsibilities, give them out for 3 years and then you are on your own. If you want to know how to survive, learn from undocumented immigrants, they can tell you how.

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