Many of our elderly choose senior subsidized apartments to live out their golden years for a variety of reasons but for most the primary reason is economic.
Thanks to various federal and state government programs that assist the elderly with low-incomes seniors can continue to live an independent lifestyle without having to deal with the on-going maintenance costs of home ownership.
In order to qualify for one of the government senior subsidized apartments you will need to fall within specific income guidelines set forth by the HUD department and anyone with an income outside of this range cannot qualify for rent assistance.
If a person does fall within the approved range they must next take their income and deduct any approved medical expenses to give them an adjusted gross income that becomes the basis for calculating the amount of the rent subsidy they will receive.
Currently, this is set at 30% which means someone with an AGI of $1,000 per month would receive $300 a month from the government towards rent and utility costs.
You need to also keep in mind that you must live in an approved complex and in highly populated areas there can be a multi-year waiting list so if you think you will qualify for government assistance when you retire you might want to search for and apply to the place where you want to live ahead of time.
For the HUD Section 202 program you or your spouse needs to be at least 62 years old in order to receive rent assistance so keep that in mind when doing your planning.
Some senior subsidized housing also have restrictions that might preclude you from living there. One example is that you must be able to live on your own without needing any outside assistance.
Senior Subsidized Apartments Services
On the plus side is the fact that many of these complexes offer additional services that are wholly or partly paid for by local government agencies or charities and can include transportation, meals and curricular activities.
If you or anyone you know is thinking about living in senior subsidized apartments spend a little time on the HUD web site and talk to a counselor about your housing options before making any decisions.