Massachusetts has a huge waitlist for state-funded housing. So why are 2,300 units vacant?

Deb Libby is running out of time to find a place to live.

Libby thought she found a potential solution nearly a year ago: She applied for state public housing, a type of subsidized housing that’s almost unique to Massachusetts. But she’s heard nothing since.In Massachusetts, which has some of the country’s most expensive real estate, Libby is among the 184,000 people on a waitlist for the state’s 41,500 subsidized apartments.found that nobody is living in nearly 2,300 state-funded apartments, with most sitting empty for months or years.

The vacancies in state-funded housing are aggravating a housing crisis in Massachusetts. Gov. Maura Healey declared a state of emergency in August to deal with the wave of homelessness. Massachusetts reports that the number of families with children staying in shelters has almost doubled in the past year to 6,386. Massachusetts spendsto house people temporarily at hotels, shelters, college dorms and a military base.

People desperate for housing are often applying for housing all over the state. Housing officials all draw names from the same central database, so it’s common for multiple housing authorities to screen the same applicant at the same time, duplicating efforts and delaying the process. Some people wind up applying for towns too far from their family or work, and ultimately don’t accept the units.

In addition, hundreds of other apartments can’t be filled because they’re undergoing repairs or because local housing authorities lack the staff or funding for vital repairs.

Technology Technology Latest News, Technology Technology Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

S&P/TSX composite down nearly 300 points, U.S. stock markets also fallTORONTO — Losses in the base metal and technology stocks helped lead a broad-based decline as Canada's main stock index fell nearly 300 points in late-morning trading and U.S. stock markets also tumbled. The S&P/TSX composite index was down 285.36 points at 19,929.33. In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 190.40 points at 34,250.48. The S&P 500 index was down 46.42 points at 4,355.78, while the Nasdaq composite was down 158.60 points at 13,310.53. The Canadian dollar traded for
Source: YahooFinanceCA - 🏆 47. / 63 Read more »

S&P/TSX composite down nearly 300 points, U.S. stock markets also fallTORONTO — Losses in the base metal and technology stocks helped lead a broad-based decline as Canada's main stock index fell nearly 300 points in late-morning trading and U.S. stock markets also tumbled. The S&P/TSX composite index was down 285.
Source: SooToday - 🏆 8. / 85 Read more »