Dear Annie 10/29

Dear Annie: My boyfriend and I have been homeless for three years, ever since I lost my lifelong home to a reverse mortgage on the coldest day of the year. We have been homeless with little money and are very poor, bouncing around from place to place with no security or stability.

For the past six months, we have been living in a metal storage shed we own and that is situated in my cousin’s yard. We chose this because we have no place else to go. The big house is up for sale and is condemned as well and has no running water. Living this way is illegal, demoralizing and dehumanizing, but, again, we have no choice right now.

We have gone everywhere for help, and no one has helped us. We have tried everything. We now have to get out as soon as possible, but we have nowhere to go. We don’t know what we are going to do, but winter is coming. We are in the middle of a housing crisis, and it has been hell.

The housing agencies that are supposed to help are nothing but a joke. They have done nothing for me in over seven years – I did try to save my home because I knew I could end up homeless – but no one helped me then, either. We worked our tails off and saved money this summer, as much as we could, but there is nothing to rent around here, and this is where our work is, and we don’t have a vehicle, so we bike and walk everywhere. We need help desperately before we’re evicted into the street. – Homeless

Dear Homeless: You have to go back to those housing agencies and other government bureaus that are set up to house the homeless. I feel for you and your boyfriend, but something just isn’t adding up. Federal, state and city laws to help house the homeless don’t appear to be working in your case. If that doesn’t work, perhaps you could seek legal help.

As for the reverse mortgage, I’m not sure how you lost your house. If you signed a reverse mortgage and the company failed to make payments on the house, you need to consult legal aid to reclaim your house.

Send your questions for Annie Lane to dearannie@creators.com.