LAFAYETTE PARISH — Residents around Lafayette Parish are feeling the pinch of rising living costs and its impact on housing affordability.
This comes as the demand for public housing and emergency housing continues.
Brandy Babineaux, a mother of two, has been dealing with housing insecurity. Babineaux was evicted from her home three months after losing her job because she couldn’t keep up with the payments. She is now living with friends.
“I’ve had to unenroll my kids from school to homeschool them because I’m not in the same place, so I can’t just put them on a bus,” she said. Babineaux applied for public housing assistance but was placed on a waitlist.
She has also tried shelters, with no luck. “They’re all at capacity, or their funding has been cut, so they can’t help anymore, and it’s stressful. If the emergency shelters can’t help, then it’s even worse than we think,” she said.
According to Lydia Begeron, executive director of the Lafayette Housing Authority, there are currently 500 people on the public housing and Section 8 waitlist, with a wait time of three years. The list includes people in Lafayette Parish, Vermilion Parish, and Jeanerette.
“We have to go by the waitlist. We can’t jump it, so as the units for public housing and landlords become available, then we go ahead and put the next person in line,” Begeron said.
A 2021 report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found that families in 48 states had to wait an average of two and a half years to get public housing vouchers due to limited funding.
With the average rent prices across the U.S. at $1,700, Babineaux says it’s almost impossible to keep up. “Inflation keeps going up, but income is not, and how are we supposed to keep up?” she said.
The LHA says if you are facing housing insecurity, you can call them for help.
