Demand for help triples; mother and daughter out in the cold

LEBANON - In what may be an effect of larger economic forces at work, the Linn-Benton Housing Authority saw the number of vouchers cashed in for housing assistance triple in the month of September.

The unexpected spike in claims for assistance meant that some applicants, such as Claudia and Lindsay Spencer of Lebanon, got bumped back onto the waiting list.

"This is just unreal. When you get older you're supposed to have more money and be set, and I feel lost right now," said Claudia Spencer, 56.

Spencer, the mother of 16-year-old Lindsay, is disabled and relies on Social Security and child support for income.

The Spencers had given up their previous apartment and were in the process of moving into a house when they received word that their housing assistance voucher had been canceled.

James Hackett, executive director of the Linn-Benton Housing Authority, said that applicants are advised not to move into a new residence until the paperwork has been finalized.

In the Spencers' case, the move has left them without a place to stay.

Spencer said she spent the deposit from her apartment on hotels, food and gas after she lost the house. She hasn't been able to find space in any of the area homeless shelters. She and her daughter have been staying at the homes of different friends.

"I have no place to go. It's just scary," Spencer said.

The Spencers applied for housing assistance a year ago and thought they had received it. They're told they will be put at the front of the waiting list, but the wait could take another year.

Hackett said the wait for assistance is typically 18 months to two years, so the Spencers' wait isn't uncommon. But their predicament is unfortunate, he said.

The Linn-Benton Housing Authority is an independent public corporation set up by Linn and Benton counties to locally administer Section 8 housing assistance from the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The regional housing agency distributes about $12 million annually to around 2,400 households in the two counties.

The agency routinely issues more vouchers each month than it expects to use because people often decide not to cash them in, Hackett said.

Typically, around 25 vouchers are used per month. In September, that number jumped to 81.

"I haven't seen anything like it in the recent past," Hackett said. "It was really unprecedented."

The Department of Housing and Urban Development restricts the budget and the number of households the local agency can assist, he said.

When the number of vouchers exceeded the agency's baseline, some of the vouchers had to be canceled.

The Spencers are now looking for a place to live. Claudia says she'll stay with a cousin in Salem for a while. Lindsay will stay with her father in Corvallis for a time.

The situation has been especially tough on Lindsay, who has health issues.

Eight years ago, she had a brain tumor removed. Then she was diagnosed with leukemia and spent the next 27 months receiving chemotherapy.

She is home-schooled now because a weak immune system makes it hard for her to fight off viral infections.

"Moving from house to house and being out in the cold doesn't help," she said.

Claudia Spencer left her cell phone number in case anyone knows of a way to assist them. She can be reached at (541) 570-0083.