The Housing Workgroup is well aware people with disabilities face many barriers when it comes to attaining affordable and accessible housing. Barriers such as limited availability of truly accessible spaces with zero thresholds, ample room for wheelchairs to maneuver, sound proof walls, high rental costs resulting in undue financial burdens, and the reduced number of housing providers and support staff are just a few.

The Housing Workgroup include members of the Metro Regional Quality Council, community advocates, service providers and Metro Regional Quality Council staff.

We wish to address these barriers and educate policy makers, agency representatives and other stakeholders about the urgency and importance of the housing situation by:

  1. Creating and distributing informational videos detailing the barriers faced by people with disabilities and their supporters when trying to attain long-term stable housing.
  2. Offering potential recommendations and solutions that could perhaps reduce some of these barriers.
  3. Presenting resources and words of wisdom from people with disabilities and their supporters based on their own lived experience.
  4. Advocating for improvements and expansion of accessible and affordable housing and housing services and programs.

Housing Policies to Support

If you are curious to know what policies to support that would make a positive difference in the lives of people with disabilities and people in general, a list is provided down below. Some of these policies might not pass this year but advocating is an ongoing endeavor.

  • Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) When landlords sell their properties, TOPA would promote the transfer of property ownership into the hands of tenants and affordable housing developers so they can exercise first rights of purchase.
  • Source of Income Protection  Make it illegal for landlords to discriminate against tenants and applicants based on Source of Income such as public assistance programs and Housing Choice Vouchers.
  • MA-EPD Reform  Lower premiums for the Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD). This will help people with disabilities get out of poverty and build financial stability.

If you wish to advocate and support policies but aren’t sure which government officials represent the voting district you live in, this legislative map can help you find your local government representatives and state senators.

Fostering Housing Conversations

As part of the workgroup’s efforts to address housing barriers, they fostered and continue to foster community conversations centered around accessible and affordable housing.

Some of their efforts include:

Housing Video Project

Down below are the videos the workgroup created. They want to distribute them far and wide so viewers know about the current state of housing and what needs to change to build a better future. The videos are entitled, “My Housing Story: Disability Community Members’ Housing Journey in Minnesota” and are a series of informational videos which highlight people with disabilities and their supporters as they make their housing journeys. The series addresses the barriers they faced, the resources they used, the solutions they created, the things they learned, recommendations they suggests, and the dreams and goals they have for the future. The series also highlight providers who talk about resources and services that offer long-term housing options and programs that best fit people’s needs and wants.

In addition to the series, there is also a Housing Resources website which lists many of the resources and services discussed in the videos plus much more.

Parent Advocate Housing Stories

This video shares parent advice and what they experienced when helping their family member with a disability find a home.

Accessible & Affordable Housing

This video shares struggles faced by people with disabilities when looking for accessible and affordable homes, and their recommendations for change.

Advocate Housing Stories

This video shares the housing journey of people with disabilities, how they found their homes, and their dreams for the future.

Housing Resources

This video shares information about programs and services that help people with disabilities find places to live.

Chris’ Housing Journey

This video highlights Chris’ journey to obtaining a wheelchair accessible home and the support services he uses to live independently.

Dupree’s Housing Journey

This video highlights Dupree’s journey of finding a home that better suits his needs and wants.

Hannah’s Housing Journey

This video highlights Hannah’s desire for more communal living options and live in support staff.

Jillian’s Housing Story

This video highlights Jillian’s desire of finding long-term housing that can be accommodating as disabilities change and progress with time.