They live in the same small town as the rest of us here. My situation is not a joke so not sure why the guy was laughing at me through the plexy glass when i asked if i could get a rejection letter for SSI so a lawyer could just look at it, i do not care if i wont win. I am actually just living off my own money through them with disability. What a help that is my own money that i paid in coming back to me, wish i knew they were one of my banks over the years. I am just mad at everybody. I asked the guy through the glass if 774.00 a month would be enough to cover his bills and he just smiled. Thats what i thought motherf#cker and you expect the rest of us to survive on that.

When something like that happens, always ask the clerk for the name of his manager. Better yet, ask for names going several levels up. Generally that helps workers to remember to deliver a professional level of service.

Having said that, the clerk that you were interacting with has *zero* control over what you get paid under disability.

There is a reason that the SS workers are behind plexiglass. They deal with angry and upset people all day long.

I agree with you that the amount of money that you are receiving is ridiculously low. I wish it were higher.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/06/2017 07:31PM by summer.

Perhaps the individual was a little out of line, but he has no control whatsoever over how much money you get. Or am I mistaken?

I dont think he does he told me to call the congressman. Fucker.

They can help move things along. Your claim (in my agency) get's flagged as a "Congressional." It doesn't mean you'll get bumped up in line, BUT, a flag is a flag.

I will go to the congressmen's house if i have to.

I honestly thought you were going to say that you are not sure Soc Sec employees realize that subsistence-level SSI payments are providing millions of dollars to the LDS church because TSCC tells people that's "income" and guilts them in to tithing on it...

Its so messed up that the cult guilts people into paying ten percent of disability. It doesnt get any lower than that. Soooo fucked up.

their empathy. They seem to see too much or something. Both my brothers get more than that in Utah. I don't know if that is the difference. They also both have a trust fund (not large, but it helps). And my one brother lives in my parents' home that is paid for, so they have a lot of other benefits going on.

BUT that money has to help in some way and, NO, nobody can really live on that $7??. Take what you can get, though. If you could just get a part-time job to subsidize your income even at something like 7-11 if you are able to do it with your health.

I just got another job offer (part-time as I have a job that is 23 hours a week. I can actually live on that other than the hospital is in a tourist area and October and April are SLOWWWWW! so I like having a little extra, but I sure hate applying for jobs and training.

I am going to try and work a little. I can make 1170.00 a month without losing disability. I just signed on with a temp agency. I did not want to work before neck surgery but i might have to.

If you get that low a social security disability payment (Federal), you are eligible to get a supplemental security payment (State) in addition.

This supplemental payment varies from state to state and is based on the cost of living in their state. My son got over $300 in California and gets $85 here in Washington.

Here's what you can realistically do to give yourself a decent quality of life. Get online to affordablehousingonline.com. Look at what kind of HUD housing is available in your state, then compare with other states. You are looking for the kind of housing that only charges you 1/3 of your income.

You can live a very nice life on under $1,000 a month if you are willing to make some pragmatic changes. For example, when I did that research I found that Pierce County, Washington had 57 places that would allow both senior and disabled. I needed to live near my son, who is disabled, and I am a senior. There were some in California, but the waiting list was like three years.

I was concerned my son was decompensating (going downhill) and would be hospitalized if I did not find him decent living circumstances.

You have your own priorities and needs, but you need to find yourself some low income housing. Don't think that I am talking about living in some "project" kind of housing. The building we are in was just bought by a different group of investors and our units have been given new black appliances, including microwaves, new carpeting, paint, floors, etc. Due to new rules which allow private businesses to offer Section 8 type housing that comes with the rental, many more investors are buying apartments and converting them to HUD facilities, because they can rent to low income people and have the government pay the difference between market rates and the 30% of your income that each tenant pays.

I hope this helps - and don't let the social security desk person's attitude get you down. Many people smile or laugh when they are nervous or don't know what to say. He is not laughing at you. That's my take, anyway.

Best

Kathleen

Hud housing takes years to get into i have been told. That will be too long.

My dad lived in some subsidized type housing in his senior years. And he didn't have much more - maybe even about the same in SS that you're getting now.

His wait time was nominal there in Idaho, near where you are. He had a nice apartment in Shelly. And another nice home I was able to visit myself before his last hospitalization, over in Arco.

The Arco one was very nice. It wasn't like an apartment at all. They were row houses but nothing on top or below - each was a single floor living with a nice sized master bd, a guest bd, bath, full kitchen, and livingroom.

Dad payed just 1/3 of his SS income for that, drove a car he was able to keep well maintained. He wasn't a big spender, never was. He had a couple collections of things like his golf clubs he didn't want to part with. If I were retired the place in Arco was actually very nice.

There's other places around like that near where you are if you look for them.

Dad also lived in one on the Oregon coast for awhile - right on the ocean. It was a nice unit also. He liked it there but moved back to Idaho to be closer to his roots and family in the area when he did.

Not all subsidized housing resembles projects, in other words. Idaho has some nice places, and there were no waiting lists when dad needed one.

Even if you run into a waiting list here and there it is still worth it to get on them after you've done your homework to decide which ones are better suited for you.

badassadam Wrote:
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> Hud housing takes years to get into i have been
> told. That will be too long.


Maybe what you were told is correct. but maybe not. If it ended up that the wait wouldn't be nearly as long as what you were told, it would be unfortunate if you hadn't applied and gotten on a waiting list.

Unfortunately Bernie's legislation doesn't usually pass.

I applied for a HUD building in 2010 after I retired in California. I applied to one place, a building in Piedmont, CA, a very nice area. They told me I might have to wait a year or more. Three months later they called me and asked if I could move immediately. I said I had to give one month notice and she said she would offer the unit to the next person who could move immediately. So of course I said no! I paid an overlapping month's rent and moved immediately, going from $850/mo to $305/mo.

I told my girlfriend about this - she lived in Seattle. She decided to apply to a HUD unit fwith aview. She wanted to see water out her window. She went to the manager and said she would move IMMEDIATELY the same week he called her. Lo and behold, a few months later he called and said "First come, first served."

Last story--the place I'm living now is a HUD building. I applied in June 2014 and moved in January 2015. I was also told there that the wait might be one year.

The truth is that manager's are held responsible for filling these apartment openings asap. They call person after person who have already moved somewhere else. They are pressed for time. If you have gone in person, just like with a job, turned in your application personally and told them you will move within a week of getting a call, this is how the system works.

Every place you look at online will say one to three years. For these for-profit buildings, they can't have vacancies or the owners lose $$. It's not like our government who can leave buildings empty and just yawn.

The Section 8 program that allows you to live anywhere they accept Section 8 is impossible. The Section 8 program that comes with a HUD for-profit building is another thing entirely.

Why accept an Eyore evaluation - get out there and ADVOCATE for your tenancy!


Kathleen

If your claim for SSI has, in fact, been denied, you should have gotten a denial letter. If one was issued and you didn't get it, you can request verification of the denial. If you are still within the appeal period, APPEAL!! And keep appealing! SSA is required by law to provide you with a written notification of the outcome of your application. A copy of the notice that was sent to you should be in the claims file, and a claims representative should be able to provide you with a copy if you did not receive one.

More than half of initial disability claims are denied. This is not a secret. And the next level, reconsideration, is usually a rubber stamp of the initial denial. But the step after THAT one - appearance before an Administrative Law Judge - is where you can see reversals, if you have qualifying evidence. You don't necessarily need an attorney; I have seen some amazing advocates from Legal Aid groups. They know how to word things and what to emphasize.

You have a limited period of time - 60 days, I believe - during which you can appeal. If you don't appeal during that period, you have to start from scratch, all over again.

Please realize that SSA employees have no control over how much a person can be paid. Every step in the computation of benefit amounts is set by law.

Beth's suggestion to contact your local Congressional rep is a good one. No guarantees, but it makes your case more visible.

Best wishes from a 30-year veteran of SSA.

I put these link on another thread, but they apply here as well:

Pocatello Legal Aid:

https://www.idaholegalaid.org/node/1058/pocatello-office-idaho-legal-aid-services

Idaho Legal Aid:

https://www.idaholegalaid.org/

I think i went to that place. They couldnt really help me quite yet.

I believe Bernie S. Proposed a monthly minimum payment of $1,000.

Did he really? that would actually make a decent difference right now.