Just a rant, neighbor bragging about govt. assist.

[2 princes 1 princess]

Okay, I usually stay out of people's business. I make my own mistakes in life and try not to judge others most of the time. I just need to rant about my neighbor for a few minutes and then I'll keep to myself.
Here goes...

My neighbor rents the house next door. The owner collects the rent and that's it. The house is falling apart and he always finds a new renter who is worse than the last ( garbage all over the place, not cutting the lawn for months etc.)

This time he found a renter with 4 pit bull dogs. The dogs seem to be very friendly however I don't let my kids around them. Again, I'm trying not to judge, I just don't want my kids around dogs that are so strong and big.

Anyway, yesterday the neighbor was talking to me about where I work. I told her that I'm changing jobs and looking for a job with different hours to decrease the amount of child care I needed. I work in a school and need a job closer to home.

She told me that since she is a single mom, she receives free child care and the director of the center feels sorry for her and takes her 2 kids overnight etc. She was very happy and thought anyone who doesnt' take advantage of this situation is an "idiot". Those were her words!!!!

Life is just great for her isn't it? They had a party last night (Wednesday) until midnight. Motorcycles revving up as their friends left.
I just saw her walking outside with the dogs. Its after noon here and she is in her pj's and the kids are at daycare. I let her know that the motorcycles woke us up and It can't happen again.

The reason I'm upset is this: My kids want a dog and we can not afford one. My husband works 2 jobs and I work as well. We are struggling to make ends meet and my neighbor is happy as a clam. This lady has free child care, food stamps and subsidized rent and
therefore can afford 4 large dogs in her two bedroom house!!!
I wish our government would make some changes here! I understand they don't get assistance for the dogs, but they get it for everything else!!!!

It ticks me off so much!!!!


Okay, I'm done.

 

[ajk912]

Yup, the system is so screwy. My sis is always making jokes, that she needs to pop out a kid so she gets more college aid, get food stamps,welfare, and maybe even section 8 housing. The rest of us are going about this all wrong. Work? Why bother?

Of course, that's not how it REALLY works, but it sure sounds that way from the way people talk.

 

[natmurr]

grrr - that kind of attitude just burns my biscuits too. I used to work at an Employment Resource Center and every once in a while I'd come across someone like that - they just visit the Center because its a requirement for welfare

 

[DanceRC28]

I totally understand and agree with you! DH and I have been taking the necessary financial steps for the past few years to ensure we have a proper home for our future children and can afford to fully take care of them with only some assistance from family (w/childcare while we both work, not in money). My friend works for DCF and when I hear the stories of the low life losers that are living for free of of the gov't, it angers me more than anything else. It is that easy, they do take advantage and there needs to be reform!

 

[Sk8Leigh]

Well first off, I would call the police about the noise the next time they're being loud at midnight.

And things like this are going to get worse.

 

[JoanneNC]

Distribution of wealth at its best

Sorry you are dealing with this....but just remember your kids are learning the right values from you

 

[parkers*momma]

double post

 

[parkers*momma]

I know EXACTLY what you mean!

I had a customer the other day who was complaining...COMPLAINING...that she only rec'ved an additional $25 in her check and $50 in foodstamps per month this year PLUS one of the programs could only get her one air conditioner and they have three bedrooms. When I asked her about the increase in her electric due to the air conditioner, she said "heap pays my utilities."

Yet, I grabbing every minute of overtime I can (which is few and far between most weeks), now hanging my clothes on the line and turned back the water heater because our electric company had a 25% increase this year, our insurance just cut what is covered plus raised our co-pay and premiums, and I haven't had a raise in 3 years. When is it going to end!

The system is being abused so much it is crazy. Ohhhh and the reason she is on assistance...she proudly boosts "I just act like I have mental problems. All I have to do is start talking to myself, acting crazy, ect. and I get everything I want. Even my Dr. believes me!" In all honesty, she is probably about the most normal person I know-she is an intelligent woman and she knows how to use the system.

We work and work and stretch and stretch just to have someone complain they aren't getting more than an extra $75.00 a month hand-out. Sad, isn't it?

 

[DisneyMomOK]

She has four dogs? I thought most cities limited the number of pets you can keep?

Congratulations to you OP, for playing by the rules and being a good role model. Unfortunately, people like your neighbor are becoming more and more prevalent.

 

[dawnbu40]

I'm sorry to hear your frustration! Trust me, I know what its like to have the loud,partying, pitbull owning, system abusing neighbor! I loved our neighborhood til ours moved in next door! Your story reminded me of an incident DD (now in college so its been a long time) had in elementary school. She came home crying one day because the other kids were teasing her at lunch. You see they told her she was some kind of loser because she had to buy her lunch and they got theirs free Go figure!

 

[crisi]

If you are suspecting someone is defrauding the system, you can report them. Most states have a special line to report suspected welfare abuse.

Food stamps don't pay for pet food (at least, not that I know of), and they really don't pay enough to feed her family plus the dogs if she is feeding the dogs people food. Extra income is entering the house - simply to feed the dogs. Since extra income has to be reported and will affect her eligibility, given the information you've given here, the chance she is committing welfare fraud seems pretty high.

 

[61292cna]

The most disgusting part is she makes everyone who gets government aid look like a bunch of freeloaders. My sister works 40 hours a week, but makes so little that, she still qualifies for food stamps, a medical card, & child care(for younger DS11). Unfotunately it has become a trap, since due to oldest DS13's mental health problems, she can either make more money(but leave son untreated = no medical) or stay under the income limit(Keep medical card & get son treated). Due to Hippa rules, I can't give diagnosis, but I know someday soon he will harm someone seriously, if he doesn't get & stay in treatment. It hurts to know she tries so hard do do right by her kids & others like this just make it so much harder!!!

 

[lcrane]

this upset me very much you see my husband is on dialysis 3x a week 4hour each day, I work 2 jobs one 8:30am-5:00pm and then 6:00pm untill 12:00pm. We have 2 kids and we do not qualify for anything it took us 2 years just to get his SSD. We almost lost the house and car, we tried to file bankruptcy but because i decided to work then they could not help us if I would have quit my job (this is when i was just working 1) then they would have help us file for bankruptcy. We have to refile everyear on his SSD and they always give us the papers to file out for Food Stamps and other assistant but since i am working we do not qualify.
Sorry had to rant but life is not fail to the ones that play by the rules.

Lisa

 

[2 princes 1 princess]

If you are suspecting someone is defrauding the system, you can report them. Most states have a special line to report suspected welfare abuse.

Food stamps don't pay for pet food (at least, not that I know of), and they really don't pay enough to feed her family plus the dogs if she is feeding the dogs people food. Extra income is entering the house - simply to feed the dogs. Since extra income has to be reported and will affect her eligibility, given the information you've given here, the chance she is committing welfare fraud seems pretty high.

I know the government doesn't pay for pet food as well as vet bills. I am frustrated because she cries for assistance with child care, housing and food and our tax money is paying it while any money she earns is obviously going to the dogs.
They look well cared for. I'm sure the system is well aware that she has dogs since section 8 pays her rent and the landlord collects about 63.00 a month from her. They know who is in the house.
Oooooh I wish she never told me all of this! Now I'm hoping for bad luck on her, and I hate when I get like that!

 

[omghidanielle]

She sounds just like MY next door neighbor!

My neighbor also does not work and collects welfare. She and her 2 dogs never leave the house (the dogs go out, only to use the bathroom...and the whole yard is full of poop) to avoid bill collectors. The dogs are so socially inept, when they see another person, they go so crazy, they spin in circles and kick their poop EVERYWHERE. Meanwhile, she stays up all night long, having speakerphone relations with her British internet-boyfriend and listening to really awful music and smoking cigarettes. And, whenever she does leave the house, the dogs WAIL and CRY like nothing I've ever heard before.

I live in a rowhome, every word of everything that she does just floats through the wall. We even had to re-arrange the entire second floor of my house just so we could sleep, because listening to her 'relations' and Hannah Montana karaoke at 3AM was getting the best of us. My master bedroom is now a big closet, but now I'm considering just emptying the room completely, because it smells like an ashtray.

But one of the best parts of all of this is that she used to own my house, and lost it to foreclosure. She also owns her house, but is losing that to foreclosure. I found out recently that she INHERITED both homes, and the bank owning her house has actually vacated the case against her, and she gets to live in her house at no cost, whatsoever, and she owes somewhere around $75,000.

AND I recently found out from another neighbor that she saved up her welfare to get herself GASTRIC BYPASS surgery.

The first time we met her, she was about 280lbs and she threatened us with her dogs because we complained about their crying for hours at a time in the early morning.

The last time I saw her, she was about 130 and she was so high that she accidentally mowed our lawn instead of her own.

I understand that it's absolutely infuriating! But, what I've learned is that you need to ignore her and just think about how much better a person you are for doing things the right way. There are some awful people in the world, there's no sense in letting them turn you into one of them!

 

[sorul82?]

Does your neighborhood have any covenants stating about how high the grass can be or number of dogs? This may take some research, but some insurance companies will drop your homeowners if you have a certain type dog. (Allstate may or may not still do this with rottweilers) I'm not sure if you could find out who the landlord has coverage with. Are the dogs on a leash? Do you have leash laws? A fence?

 

[silmarg]

wow, a lot of tough stories here. i guess I should count my blessings.

 

[disneynuts777]

I know EXACTLY what you mean!

I had a customer the other day who was complaining...COMPLAINING...that she only rec'ved an additional $25 in her check and $50 in foodstamps per month this year PLUS one of the programs could only get her one air conditioner and they have three bedrooms. When I asked her about the increase in her electric due to the air conditioner, she said "heap pays my utilities."

Yet, I grabbing every minute of overtime I can (which is few and far between most weeks), now hanging my clothes on the line and turned back the water heater because our electric company had a 25% increase this year, our insurance just cut what is covered plus raised our co-pay and premiums, and I haven't had a raise in 3 years. When is it going to end!

The system is being abused so much it is crazy. Ohhhh and the reason she is on assistance...she proudly boosts "I just act like I have mental problems. All I have to do is start talking to myself, acting crazy, ect. and I get everything I want. Even my Dr. believes me!" In all honesty, she is probably about the most normal person I know-she is an intelligent woman and she knows how to use the system.

We work and work and stretch and stretch just to have someone complain they aren't getting more than an extra $75.00 a month hand-out. Sad, isn't it?

Are you kidding me!!!???? I am working 2 jobs to make up the difference in DH's and my cut pay and hours. We are in the middle of maybe being transferred so DH can keep his job and then I read about people like this!!!

 

[funnygarcia]

this upset me very much you see my husband is on dialysis 3x a week 4hour each day, I work 2 jobs one 8:30am-5:00pm and then 6:00pm untill 12:00pm. We have 2 kids and we do not qualify for anything it took us 2 years just to get his SSD. We almost lost the house and car, we tried to file bankruptcy but because i decided to work then they could not help us if I would have quit my job (this is when i was just working 1) then they would have help us file for bankruptcy. We have to refile everyear on his SSD and they always give us the papers to file out for Food Stamps and other assistant but since i am working we do not qualify.
Sorry had to rant but life is not fail to the ones that play by the rules.

Lisa

I hope you swing by to read this.. from one wife loving a chronically ill person to another...

My husband has been in kidney failure and on dialysis for the past 10 years.
ESRD (end stage real disease) is an "automatic" qualifier for social security disability. I'm confused by your "refile every year" that is not true if he is getting SSDI, my husband has not needed to refile.

He does need to keep social secuity informed of any changes in HIS employment or in his disability.

Also, has your husband considered home hemo? In center dialysis is not the only choice! My husband dilayzes at home, 2 1/2 hrs five to six days a week. HE chooses the time, days off and how he wants to handle his own care. It's made a HUGE difference in his health and now works full time as a middle school science teacher.

The sad truth of it... after taxes, health insurance deductibles and copays... he makes just as much as he did NOT working and just collecting disability. He could sit at home and get full medical covered (as an employed person with disablity .. he could work a few hours per month and "buy in" to medical assistance, they only count HIS income for that program. Limiting how much he can earn overall.. or get cut off of social security.)

This is why it's hard for those who "use the system", it's nearly impossible to leave the system. There are no safety nets for the disabled or chronically ill that have very expensive health care.

 

[4Seasons]

Unfortunately this happens far more often than the government likes to believe or admit.
If your neighbor is renting the house thru section 8 there are guidelines she needs to live by and guidelines her landlord needs to follow.
I'm sure it varies widely by state but we have a couple properties we own with section 8 tenants and they are very strict on us and the tenants. An inspector comes out once a year and goes over the properties with a fine tooth comb and we must remedy all "deficiencies" in a particular timeframe. Some inspectors are much tougher than others (we always seem to get the tough ones) but it's in the tenant's contract with HUD they must upkeep the property.
If she is in fact on section 8, contact your local housing authority or department of housing to find out who to make a formal complaint to. They are supposed to check into all complaints within a certain timeframe. If you can find out the name of her counselor/caseworker, all the better (in our county when you call the housing office the caseworker's clients are assigned by first letter of the last name, so it's not hard to figure out because there is a recorded message).
Bad neighbors are a tough thing to live with, been there and done that. That's why 16 years ago we decided to move from a housing development to a house on 2 1/2 acres in the woods. We have LOTS of critters around, but I can tolerate living with snakes, lizards, frogs, turtles, deer, racoons, squirrels, etc. alot better than living next to some people I've known.

I hope you can get it worked out.