Author: Marge

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HUD 202 Income Limits

Section 202 is the official name for one of the senior housing programs offered by the federal government and consists of public rental housing options for qualifying seniors…

The Section 202 program is the Department’s principal program designed to develop subsidized rental housing for very low-income older adults. The intent of the program is to provide more than just shelter, as shown by the following passages of the Housing Act of 1959:
“Sec. 202. (a) (1) The purpose of this section is to assist private nonprofit corporations to provide housing and related facilities for elderly families and elderly persons… (d) (8) The term “related facilities” means (A) new structures suitable for use as cafeterias or dining halls, community rooms or buildings, or infirmaries or other inpatient or outpatient health facilities or for other essential service facilities , and (B) structures suitable for the above uses by rehabilitation, alteration, conversion, or improvement of existing structures which are otherwise inadequate for such uses.”
The Congress clearly wanted to provide a continuum of care that includes appropriate support needed by frail elders to maintain independent living.

HUD income limits change each year due to inflation and cost of living adjustments and are published by the government on HUD website as soon as they are updated.

In order to qualify for HUD 202 housing you need to be 62 or older and fall in the Very Low Income limits for your particular state/county/city which is currently 50 percent of the median income level as established by the government.

HUDThis means you need to look up the state and county you live in to find the median income and take half of that. If you make less than that amount you can qualify for HUD 202 public housing.

HUD 202 Income Limits vary From State To State

This means that a senior might qualify for HUD 202 senior housing in one state and/or county but not another because it is regionally based. The reason the HUD 202 income limits are calculated this way is because the government thinks that a person living in a higher median income area most likely will have a retirement income in line with that median income.

Any senior planning on moving and wanting to qualify for Section 202 housing should check the median income level for that area to make sure they will still qualify for assistance before they move.

The whole idea behind the 202 program was to provide a safety net for those seniors with the lowest incomes affordable housing. With that in mind the rental choices for 202 qualifiers will most likely not be as nice as other types of senior subsidized living units.

To find the HUD 202 income limits for your state and county the HUD site has a PDF you can download and also a handy interactive map that easily lets you check what the median incomes are for your area and they also provide the 50 percent limits so you don’t even have to do any math.

Here is a quote about how Median Family Incomes are calculated:

How does HUD calculate median family incomes?

To calculate the FY 2011 MFI estimates, HUD incorporates 2005-2009 5-year ACS data. Specifically, for each metropolitan area, subarea of a metropolitan and non-metropolitan county, 5-year ACS data is used as the new basis for calculating MFI estimates. HUD is incorporating the 5-year data in this way to eliminate the reliance on the data collected during the 2000 Decennial Census as it is more than a decade old. In areas where there is a valid 1-year ACS survey MFI result, HUD endeavors to use this data as well to take advantage of more recent survey information. By using both the 5-year data and the 1-year data, where available, HUD is establishing a new basis for median family income estimates while also capturing the most recent information available.

 HUD 202 Facts

The Section 202 program produces good quality housing that is rated highly by its residents. They are predominantly elderly women living alone with incomes between $5,000 and $15,000. Currently, demand for Section 202 housing far exceeds supply.

Recently completed research has shown that program costs are reasonable in relation to costs of other development programs as well as industry norms. However, in recent years, the historically low level of Section 202 annual appropriations provided by Congress, in combination with HUD practices regarding allocation of funds, has resulted in development of multiple, small projects – often proposed and developed by relatively inexperienced, small sponsors – that have reduced program efficiency and significantly contributed to project processing delays.

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How To Qualify For Government Subsidized Senior Living

It is a sad fact that many of our senior citizens need help paying their living expenses because they do not have enough money.

If you are a senior or are helping one and need to know how to qualify for government subsidized senior living it really isn’t that hard because there are many federal and state programs in place to aid you and there is nothing wrong with getting assistance after working for years and paying taxes.

If you are interested in the HUD 202 program you or your spouse needs to be 62 years old or older in order to qualify for assistance. Additionally, you cannot have any children such as grand kids living with you.

The primary qualification is that you have a low income as specified by the government. This is based on income ranges that are periodically changed for inflation and/or cost of living adjustments (COLA).

This income then has any approved medical expenses deducted from it and a quick search will provide a list of what these eligible expenses are. The result is then multiplied by a factor (currently 30%) and that is the amount you will receive in government help.

So, anyone that has too high of an income will be ineligible to qualify for government subsidized senior living because the government feels that they are able to pay for their own rent without the need for any outside help.

The final qualification is that the senior must live in an approved residence and in densely populated areas there can be a long waiting list. If this is the case you will be best served if you can find out the wait times and plan accordingly so you can live in the community of your choice when it comes time to move.

Additionally, some subsidized housing programs stipulate that you must be able to care for yourself with minimal outside help but many senior buildings will have additional services that are sometimes paid either partially or completely by the government to aid anyone needing some additional care.

If a senior does fail to qualify for senior subsidized housing all is not lost because many charities have programs that can help provide and these are certainly worth investigating. Keep in mind that many of these programs require the applicant to be a member of their organization such as a fraternal order or religious sect.

So, how to qualify for government subsidized senior living? Simple, just ask. For more information check out this article Senior Citizen Government Subsidized Housing that has some great tips.