I am about to be homeless!

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If you must know, I live in Jackson, Tennessee. Cut to the last line if you don't want to read anything.

I am going to have to move starting January 2010. I am living in a small apartment, and the landlord is going to either raise the rent from $500 (including utilities) to $600, or vacate the place entirely. I don't know. One thing I do know for sure is that this WILL be the last month that I am staying in this apartment. But I cannot afford to move, nor do I have anyone who will take me in! I only have a $650+ disability check and $100 in food stamps each month, and that's not enough. I have a little over a thousand in savings, but that's from a Lottery scholarship check.

Oh, and I am still recovering from being ran over by a car about a month ago. My left ankle is fractured and my left knee is cracked, I cannot walk on it! Why does the damn roof have to fall in over my head in my greatest time of NEED!?! The only person who wants to help me is on vacation and might return tomorrow, but I'm not sure her "help" will be enough to keep me from being homeless...

She said that she will help me find another place, but honestly... Jackson sucks! I am sure as hell not staying in the projects or slummy apartments and get mugged. I'm very poor and physically weak. I don't know what to do. I might have to look in a small town for an apartment because Jackson's places are unsuitable for me, then I won't be able to go to Jackson State Community College. ARGH! It makes me sick how some people expect me to be without any adequate help!

If I can just get a roof over my head where I can sleep easy at night and not worry about getting mugged or shot, then I'll be JUST fine! I could go back to living with my mother, but she is very incompetent, and her house is 5 miles from a small town, out in the country. No high speed internet, no good doctor to go to, lucky to have telephone or electricity... So that's out of the question.

So... Anybody have any suggestions to help me find a place to live?

Your mother's place may not be an ideal solution, but it is still a roof over your head. From there you can plan your next move. It doesn't have to be permanent.

I forgot to mention that I do not have a car nor a drivers' license.

Remain adaptive. It is how I have survived harder times.

I don't live near you, and so can't bail you out. Get a job. I surmise you are able to walk unaided, and manipulate objects such as the computer you are typing on. I therefore presume you are a viable subject for some menial, yet paid tasks.

Last edited by Asmodeus on 04 Dec 2009, 7:19 am, edited 1 time in total.

No, he can't walk unaided. He's recovering from being hit by a car.

My own inability to read suprises me. I'll press my point regardless; is there work available that doesn't involve being on your feet, that you have the skills to do? There is usually an excess of christmas work going, you might still fit the bill for some.

well, that cancels out all retail and food service work. maybe some insurance company or it company is hiring for phone people. do more people get into accidents/destroy their computers around the holidays? everyone is shopping, so maybe.

man, i feel for you. it's tough out there. my fiancee is physically disabled, but even though he can walk, he can't hold any sort of normal job. i hope you make a swift recovery.

HEY! at least you don't have snow!

I am sorry to hear that, that must be so scary, and so frightening. Are there agencies in your town you can contact for help? What about sharing a place with someone - that is usually cheaper than living in an apartment. Go on your local Craigslist and start looking at the roommate ads. You can usually find something for 300-500, especially if you don't mind living with a couple other people. It could be a temporary solution until you're able to find something more permanent. I feel for you.

I just took a look for you, here is a room with a private bathroom for only 400 a month

http://jacksontn.craigslist.org/roo/1491813243.html

A few apts for cheap listed too but dont know if hey include utils. Roomshares usually include them unless noted otherwise.

Good luck
Kate

Thank you. I will look into that! I never really had a job and when I looked, there were hardly any. West Tennessee gets pretty cold during the winter months, but no snow like jamesongerbil said, maybe a few inches a year, but nothing bad. I tried looking for jobs several months ago, but there were none that I could easily qualify for. I don't think I could handle having both a job and going to college while riding the city bus...

You are very, very right. Personal safety is vitally important. Please trust your best judgments and trust your gut instincts.

When I rode buses in Houston some buses were pipelines. The 25 Richmond was a pipeline coming every 20 minutes. The 82 Westheimer, a pipeline!

So, maybe you could find a good place on a bus line that's a pipeline to Jackson State Community College?

Or even half a pipeline. I can tell you from personal experience, a bus that comes every half hour is a hec of a lot better than one that comes only every hour!

Okay, it seems to me that you can do two things parallel. See if an agency will stand up for you either as a person with a disability or just as a tenant that the landlord hasn't given enough notice. A lot depends on the particular person in the agency. And frankly a lot depends on how big a bastard the landlord is. Try not to get emotionally involved (I struggle with that myself, 'how can I not get emotionally involved . . . ') I know, but try and be very strategic. Like Kennedy and Khruschev, play your best game. If possible, negotiate through an intermediary, although this is not strictly necessary. In particular, do not allow yourself to be bullied into paying for a whole month when you should just pay prorated. For example, if you stay through Jan. 10th, you should just pay till Jan. 10th. You're not the one wanting to leave, the landlord is pushing you out.

And at the same time, use Craig's List, college resources, whatever, to find a good place.

All the best during this difficult time.

Well, there's only one bus that goes by JSCC, every hour! Very inconvenient, just like the rest of Jackson's bus system. Places that normally takes about 15 minutes to drive to in a car usually take about 30 minutes to a couple of hours on the city bus depending on where you need to go and how far you have to walk to/from the bus stop. Crazy!

I found an apartment on Craigslist that sounds similar to mine. 500 a month including utilities and cable TV, furnished with AC, stove, and fridge, on the second floor, and only a few blocks away. But I'm not sure I want to pay THAT much like I did here, but I guess I will have to keep looking, and I just can't live with a roommate. I'm scared that there won't be any relationship between us and I have no communication skills.

Yeah, keep going that middle course. Continue to trust your gut instincts. In particular, do not waste time trying to talk yourself into something that does not seem initially promising. So yeah, I think you're doing it just right. A place doesn't seem promising, move on to the next possibility.

In fact, I'd even recommend, when a place does look good, revisit it a second time the next day during a different time of the time. And if possible, take a medium bus trip to and from it, that kind of thing. And see how it still feels.

In times of stress, for me personally, I can jump to a decision. And I don't want to do that. I want to play my most deliberate and skillful game. Now, mind you, I'm not looking for perfect, I'm looking for good, esp good when looked at from several different angles and on several different occasions.

And please remember, good luck happens at unexpected times!