I see. Here in the country we have a very similar albeit, imo, worse problem. We have virtualy no zoning laws. In my neighborhood, for example, many of the longtime residents are elderly and are dying or moving into assisted living quarters or nursing homes. Their children are selling the homes to people who are not only renting the houses but also moving in two or three older house trailers onto the large lots. These are then rented to people with HUD paying varying shares of the rent. Once proud neigborhoods have gone downhill at an alarming rate.

 

In my opinion, it is not discrimination to bar HUD housing from various neighborhoods. People are allowed move in as they like, but they have to pay just as the current residents do.

 

I wish you could see the section 8 housing in Barbourville. It consists mainly of communities of two family dwellings very neatly maintained by the city. Even the lawns are mowed, trimed, and mulched by city employees. It's like living in a condo community only in this case one must be low income to be eligible.

 

Good point, Pepper. At least in cities and most suburbs, you have zoning laws that you can appeal to if a property gets too far out of hand.

If you have public assistance nearby and the house across the street would go for $400k, it's probably worth $500k without the public assistance down the street. It does have a huge impact. Ask anyone who invests in real estate.

 

I realize that. The thing is, too many people think there's some written law that property values can only appreciate.

 

For the record, just because I'm a renter doesn't mean I don't understand how bad having a crummy neighbor can be. My parents moved into their older house on the river about eight years ago (up the block from the house I grew up in). They rent the old house out and have been fortunate that the current renters have been very good.

 

They can't say the same thing for the old house next door to them that sold about two years after they bought the riverfront place, and a white-trash fellow and his sons moved in and gradually began destroying the beautiful old turn-of-the-century brick home and the land leading down to the river. I know they were dealing drugs out of it, and I'm pretty sure they were cooking up meth in the old garage. They finally moved out after years of complaints from neighbors over zoning code violations and other issues.

 

The point is, no one's immune. Not all renters are crummy, so trying to keep all of them out is xenophobic, at best. And not all homeowners are aces as well. If you want your property values to remain high, there's more to it than just griping about your neighbors. You have to work at it.

It happened in my old neighborhood. I moved.

 

It happened in my neighborhood. I planted pine trees.

 

 

 

I plan to move.

 

 

I'm not saying that all (or even "most") low-income people are untrustworthy, apathetic, trouble-making, slackers.

 

Ballpark a % for us.

I get the feeling that many people are confusing renters with section 8 housing. Big difference. As to the topic, I have harsher feelings for the slumlord owners than the tenants.

No, I have a pathological fear of odd numbers.

 

:lol:

When I see posts such as this, I then realize I have missed BGP more than I previously thought.

RTS,

I sympathize with your situation, but if you're suggesting some sort of law to restrict property usage, get ready for the property rights crowd to drop on you like a load of bricks. I don't know if there is some type of zoning category that could restrict the type of allowable rentals. In many newer neighborhoods, there are deed restrictions setup by the developer that everyone buying into the community is theoretically held to.

 

Let's be clear, however, that your neighbors don't have to be Section 8 renters to make for an unpleasant/property-value-damaging experience. In the first house my wife and I owned in the Highlands section of Louisville, we had neighbors on one side of us that had let their property go terribly (weeds growing out of control, unmaintained paint, rotting wood trim). And bad or irresponsible neighbors (owners, not renters) can move in at any time. There is a house at the end of our block right now (in a very nice Louisville east end neighborhood) going through foreclosure. The soon to be ex-homeowners apparently got in way over their heads. The landscaping is unmaintained and the neighbors on either side take turns cutting the grass. Just one of the risks you face being a property owner.

In most cases doesn't work. IF you can even find the owner they often do not care. That's why they take section 8 in the first place. The tenants don't care either in most cases I've dealt with. It's a very frustrating experience. Often a dangerous one also if you're not careful.

This is completely true. :thumb:

The point is, no one's immune. Not all renters are crummy, so trying to keep all of them out is xenophobic, at best. And not all homeowners are aces as well. If you want your property values to remain high, there's more to it than just griping about your neighbors. You have to work at it.

No one has ever made a blanket statement like that about all renters. Shoot, my own grandparents were renters for over 50 years. We're talking about a certain segment of the renting population, and specifically, people in the Section 8/HUD program.

It happened in my old neighborhood. I moved.

Did you own or rent? I don't care much for the "oh well, I guess I'll have to move" attitude. I worked hard for what I have, why should I have to pack up and leave because of someone that didn't work for what they have?

I realize that. The thing is, too many people think there's some written law that property values can only appreciate.

 

For the record, just because I'm a renter doesn't mean I don't understand how bad having a crummy neighbor can be. My parents moved into their older house on the river about eight years ago (up the block from the house I grew up in). They rent the old house out and have been fortunate that the current renters have been very good.

 

They can't say the same thing for the old house next door to them that sold about two years after they bought the riverfront place, and a white-trash fellow and his sons moved in and gradually began destroying the beautiful old turn-of-the-century brick home and the land leading down to the river. I know they were dealing drugs out of it, and I'm pretty sure they were cooking up meth in the old garage. They finally moved out after years of complaints from neighbors over zoning code violations and other issues.

 

The point is, no one's immune. Not all renters are crummy, so trying to keep all of them out is xenophobic, at best. And not all homeowners are aces as well. If you want your property values to remain high, there's more to it than just griping about your neighbors. You have to work at it.

True Jim, but it's pathetic that the government places these people in nice neighborhoods. When things happen to areas like what's going on in the West Side of Cincy, all the work in the world isn't going to help, you're stuck. A lot of people can't afford to just up and move every time the govt places these dregs into their neighborhoods either.

RTS,

I sympathize with your situation, but if you're suggesting some sort of law to restrict property usage, get ready for the property rights crowd to drop on you like a load of bricks. I don't know if there is some type of zoning category that could restrict the type of allowable rentals. In many newer neighborhoods, there are deed restrictions setup by the developer that everyone buying into the community is theoretically held to.

 

Let's be clear, however, that your neighbors don't have to be Section 8 renters to make for an unpleasant/property-value-damaging experience. In the first house my wife and I owned in the Highlands section of Louisville, we had neighbors on one side of us that had let their property go terribly (weeds growing out of control, unmaintained paint, rotting wood trim). And bad or irresponsible neighbors (owners, not renters) can move in at any time. There is a house at the end of our block right now (in a very nice Louisville east end neighborhood) going through foreclosure. The soon to be ex-homeowners apparently got in way over their heads. The landscaping is unmaintained and the neighbors on either side take turns cutting the grass. Just one of the risks you face being a property owner.

I understand and agree to a point, but in the case of the lousy owner you're only dealing with a few at most. With Section 8, it can turn the entire neighborhood into blight in a drastically short amount of time. Add to that all the crime that comes along with these people.

No one has ever made a blanket statement like that about all renters. Shoot, my own grandparents were renters for over 50 years. We're talking about a certain segment of the renting population, and specifically, people in the Section 8/HUD program.

Exactly, the house next to mine rented for years to nice, decent people. When it went Section 8 the problems started. Thank God things are back to normal now!

I'll ask again: Are we not willing to offer these families a better way of life including a strong education in the Ft Thomas system that could end the cycle that many families are in? Or is Ft Thomas (and other "nice" communities) only for those that can afford it without govt assistance?

I'll ask again: Are we not willing to offer these families a better way of life including a strong education in the Ft Thomas system that could end the cycle that many families are in? Or is Ft Thomas (and other "nice" communities) only for those that can afford it without govt assistance?

Let's take choice "B" and see how it goes for a while. :lol: