As Manitoba continues to grapple with a lack of affordable housing, staff at organizations across the Network work daily to remove obstacles for those seeking the few options available. Isayas Tekeste, a Housing and Social Supports Facilitator at Huddle South Central, managed by Youville Centre, sat down to talk about what he sees as he supports those aged 18 to 29.
Can you give people a sense of how challenging it is to find affordable housing right now?
If someone is on Employment and Income Assistance (EIA), they’re given $635 a month for housing. When it comes to what’s actually available, the best I can do for people these days is $800 all in, which is not bad, but still more than what most have access to. There are some smaller extra sources of funding, but not everyone qualifies.
What’s truly most challenging about affordable housing is that a lot of the young adults we work with want to make changes in their lives. Much of the affordable housing available is in the inner city, and that could means bumping into past friends that you would prefer not see, for example. It means more exposure to easily accessible drugs. It’s hard to start fresh when that’s what’s around you. We need more options in different parts of the city.
You talk about the connection between changing lifestyles and affordable housing options. Is that where social supports come in?
Exactly. What I’ve figured out is that you cannot just house someone, and then leave them there without any support. Securing a good place to live is one thing, but staying on good terms with their landlords is sometimes hard, too. To be able to maintain good relationships, you want your participants to have the right mindset and the right support to stay housed.
At Huddle, we can help people get new or proper identification, which is a common issue, get into detox, or connect them to additional funding, like through their band or Jordan’s Principle if they’re Indigenous and have children with needs. We also talk about things like budgeting, which also helps people stay housed once they do find a place to stay.
What’s the biggest difference you see in people when they are able to secure housing?
For a lot of young adults, getting housed means freedom! They’re coming out of Child and Family Services or a household where some bad things happened. This is their first time to be free, to express themselves how they want, to not be scared to come home at night, to know that this is their home, and they can decide what they do in it.
I recently worked with someone, and I made it my mission to make him smile. He just wouldn’t do it, no matter what I tried. We got him housed, and he still comes to Huddle for other services. The joy on his face when I see him now…he’s a totally different man. He’d never lived alone. He’d never had that freedom. I have seen so much joy in the faces of people who have been able to get that little home of their own and that is such rewarding work for me.