Housing Guide and Resources

Missouri Department of Mental Health Housing Team

Resources for Finding Affordable Housing

Finding affordable rental housing used to be a matter of scanning newspaper classified advertisements. The World Wide Web has many new resources that make finding affordable housing much easier. Explore the links below to see what's available in your area.

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Oxford House

Oxford House

National Oxford House Web site

What is an Oxford House?

Oxford Houses are self-run, self-supportive recovery houses for persons in recovery from alcohol and/or drug addiction. Oxford Houses provide opportunities for every recovering individual to learn a clean and sober way of life--forever. Each House follows standardized operations developed through 33 years of Oxford House experience. There are three basic requirements for the group:

  1. It must be democratically self-run;
  2. It must be financially self-supported; and
  3. It must expel any resident who returns to using alcohol or drugs.

Individuals living in an Oxford House learn or relearn values, responsible behavior and develop long-term behavior to assure comfortable sobriety forever. Some individuals live in Oxford House a few months, others for many years. Together, these individuals develop each Oxford house into a place to learn comfortable sobriety without relapse.

As a general rule, a person who stays at an Oxford House for 18 months or more has about an 80% chance of staying clean and sober, as opposed to 20% at a 28-day treatment program with no aftercare.

How do you apply for membership?

Individuals are welcome to apply directly at the Oxford house of their choice. For a complete list of contacts for Missouri's Oxford Houses, please click this link. If there are no vacancies, the applicant may be placed on a waiting list or referred to another Oxford House in the area.

To be accepted, the applicant must receive a total of 80% of the House membership vote. Once accepted, the new member receives all the rights, privileges and responsibilities afforded to all members of Oxford House, worldwide.

How much does it cost?

Rent varies from House to House, but typically ranges between $250 to $375 per month. Deposits will vary and the conditions for deposit refunds are determined by each individual House. Rent includes all utilities, phone, cable and basic house supplies.

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Missouri Community Action Agencies

Community Action Agencies

In Missouri there are 19 Community Action Agencies (CAA's), and every county in the state has at least one CAA office. Community Action Agencies are dedicated to fighting the causes as well as the effects of poverty. Many of them have help available at times during the year to help pay rent or energy bills. Many of them operate their own low-cost housing programs that include housing for people experiencing homelessness. Many more have money to use for home repairs that must be made in order to avoid having your home condemned. If you are in danger of losing your home, getting evicted, or having your power shut off, it is important to contact your local Community Action Agency to see if they can help you. To find your nearest CAA office, click the link in the heading above, scroll down the page until you see the Missouri map, and click on the county you live in.

Community Action Agencies

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Public Housing Authorities

Many cities and towns in Missouri have Public Housing Authorities (PHA's). These agencies are in charge of administering low-income housing in their towns or counties; some also own their own affordable rental properties to rent to area residents who cannot afford the normal rents in the area. Most PHA's also administer the federal rental voucher program usually known as "Section 8". If you are unable to find affordable housing on your own, or wish to apply for Section 8 housing, your local Public Housing Authority may be able to help you. Click on the link in the heading above to see a list of all the PHA's in Missouri. In some cases, your local Community Action Agency office will also be your Public Housing Authority.

Public Housing Authorities

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Missouri Centers for Independent Living

Centers for Independent Living

The Centers for Independent Living (CIL's) are located throughout Missouri and help people with disabilities achieve greater independence in their daily lives through community-based support. Their activities include helping disabled people find housing appropriate to their needs. Click the link above for a complete list of the Missouri Centers for Independent Living.

Centers for Independent Living Website

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Foreclosure Prevention and Mitigation Resources

If you own your own home but are in danger of losing it because you can't make your house payments, the following Web sites provide resources that may help you prevent foreclosure or lessen its impact on you financially.

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Foreclosure Resource Center

The Web site of the Federal Reserve Bank's St. Louis office has foreclosure resources for the community, consumers and financial institutions, along with useful research and related publications.

Federal Reserve Board Foreclosure Resources

The main Federal Reserve Board Web site has pages of comprehensive multi-agency information on foreclosure, including scam prevention tips, credit counseling resources, and foreclosure prevention.

888-995-HOPE

Created by the Homeownership Preservation Foundation, this is a toll-free hot-line providing homeowners information and counseling on how to avoid home foreclosure.  The Foundation’s Web site states that the HOPE hotline has provided free advice and education to more than 145,000 homeowners since 2002 through a network of lenders and non-profits services dedicated to helping homeowners avoid foreclosure.

The Homeownership Preservation Foundation is a Minneapolis-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit.  The site states that each HOPE counselor is certified either by the NFCC or the AFCPE (Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education).

HUD Web Site

HUD’s Web site has links to information and resources relating to a wide variety of foreclosure issues..

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Information About Rental Assistance, Subsidized Home Loans, and Home Renovation Assistance: "Missouri's Guide to Housing Assistance Programs"

Missouri's Guide to Housing Assistance Programs

Click on the image above to download this publication in PDF format (if your computer doesn't have a PDF reader program, go to the bottom of this page and click the "Get Adobe Reader" icon). You can also contact the Housing Team to request a paper copy of this publication.

The Department of Mental Health participated in the production of this comprehensive guide to state and federal housing assistance resources. "Missouri's Guide to Housing Assistance Programs" includes information on rent subsidy programs, first-time home buyers programs and renovation assistance programs. It also has detailed contact information for dozens of agencies all over the state that provide housing assistance in a variety of forms.

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Other Housing Resources

If you would like to have your housing organization's Web site listed in this section, please contact the Housing Team.

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