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When Tiger's Redwood City landlord told him she was demolishing his rented cottage, the news could not have come at a worse time. (Tiger’s given name is Gabriel, but he prefers his chosen nickname.) The pandemic was in full swing and Tiger had been furloughed from his job. At the request of Tiger’s father Carl, Tiger’s Golden Gate Regional Center Social Worker referred him for housing support services.
Since Tiger had received a notice of lease termination, Housing Choices was able to help him apply to the Housing Authority of San Mateo County for rental assistance. He secured a Mainstream Housing Voucher for people with disabilities who are at immediate risk of homelessness or of being placed in a segregated care facility. The voucher made it possible for Tiger to apply for rentals in his hometown of Redwood City which he would not otherwise have been able to afford. With help from Housing Choices, Tiger contacted more than 20 landlords who had vacancies.
Even with the voucher, Tiger's disability-related needs made it a challenge to find a suitable rental. He needed a home that was close to appropriate public transit so he could continue to commute to his job. Unfortunately, all the available transit-friendly rental opportunities tended to offer apartments with immediate neighbors who would likely object to the noise Tiger makes because of his hearing loss and some autism-related vocalization behaviors. Although California law prohibits discrimination based on using a housing voucher, some landlords were simply non-responsive once they realized Tiger depended on the voucher to help pay the rent.
In February 2020, Tiger's parents had completed the installation of an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU), a legal separate dwelling unit, in the backyard of their single-family home, with the goal of earning retirement income from short-term market rentals. Once the pandemic hit and Tiger was faced with the loss of his rented cottage, the family had to re-think the goals of the ADU. After Housing Choices demonstrated Tiger's diligent efforts to find an apartment that would accept the voucher and meet his disability-related needs, Tiger was able to secure a "reasonable accommodation" exception to the Housing Authority's rule against renting from a family member. The Housing Authority allowed Tiger to rent the ADU in his family's backyard where the noise he makes will not bother any neighbors and where he remains close to his social networks and his job.
In thanking Housing Choices, Tiger's father Carl noted: "It's very unlikely Tiger would have gotten both a voucher and permission to use the voucher at our backyard ADU without the expertise and support of our Housing Choices Housing Coordinator, Nicole Marquez. She helped our family navigate Tiger’s loss of his rental housing in the middle of the pandemic, and this gives us hope for the future."
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