The Sun
Sunnyvale's Newspaper

Stretching Exercises: Fixed incomes are a reality for many seniors. It takes creativity to make ends meet without that annual raise, especially in an area with spiraling housing costs. This section covers resources that seniors can use to stretch the contents of their wallets to cover the rising cost of living.

Lowering the roof on housing costs

Local groups work to shelter seniors from rising rents

By Maggie Benson

When Priscilla Pfahl lived in Florida nearly eight years ago, she got by on a small monthly pension and Social Security check, bringing in just enough to pay her $300-a-month trailer space rental and day-to-day living expenses.

So when her daughter called and invited Pfahl to move with her to California, the then-72-year-old widow answered with a speedy "Yes."

"[I figured] then I wouldn't have to worry about my house," she said. "Then I'd have the money to travel, like I've always wanted to."

Living on a fixed income is a reality most seniors face, but not all are as lucky as Pfahl. Many don't have families they can turn to and must cope with living on a moderate income.

The single most pressing issue seniors living on a fixed income face is housing, according to Barbara Stanke, a referral specialist at Information and Referral Services, a nonprofit organization that links the elderly to services.

While the rental market is tight throughout Santa Clara County, it is even tighter when it comes to low-income housing--which many seniors are in need of, according to Stanke. Most of the low-income housing projects are booked, she said, leaving seniors to either wait or to fend for themselves in the regular rental market.

The rental market poses another problem, Stanke said. Many subsidized housing units are now converting to fair market units to take advantage of huge rental rates, Stanke said.

"There are some seniors who have lived in subsidized housing for 20 to 30 years who are getting eviction notices," she explained.

And when the notice comes, they're on their own. There is no program set up for finding seniors housing.

Cory Kent is a social worker in the Older Adult Program of Family Services, covering the South San Jose area. The aim of family services is to keep frail seniors in their homes as long as possible by connecting them with services in the area. She agrees with Stanke that the biggest problem facing fixed-income seniors is housing.

"For seniors it is so very difficult on a fixed income. Section 8 housing is very difficult to get. Getting into senior housing can take anywhere from six months to five years. And it's hard for seniors because they have to go to homes for interviews. ... This can become a difficult task if a senior is frail and doesn't have a driver's license."

"The area I work in, in particular, I see people who are cash poor," Kent explained. "Maybe they bought their house 30 years ago, and they're living on $800 to $900 a month Social Security. They want to stay in their home, and it's very difficult. These are the ones that fall through the cracks. They aren't low enough income to qualify for Medi-Cal. They may be able to get their Meals on Wheels, they may be able to get Brown Bag, but what they really need is someone to do their housework."

Paul Isaacs, deputy director of the Council on Aging, said one option for some seniors is to go back to work. "We have an employment program here," he commented, "and we find there's an awful lot of people who may have had a decent job and retired earlier than they had hoped and now they have to go back to work."

Most of the jobs the council finds are in security, retail, delivery and light clerical--not a lot of computer, though Isaacs said many seniors are taking courses to get up to speed in the computer industry.

There are other services seniors can rely on to help ease the burden of living on a tight income. Senior centers, for one, are a great resource, according to Pfahl. She is a regular at Willows Senior Center in Willow Glen, where she has taken advantage of the free legal advice, handed out by a lawyer who visits the center once a month. "There's so much free stuff here," she said. "You can just live with what you have."

Senior Centers

The following centers attract a clientele of over-50 adults from throughout the valley. Especially useful services include computer classes, workshops on health insurance and programs that offer free or low-cost legal advice.

Cupertino Senior Center--21251 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino (408/777-3150). Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8am-5pm.

Sunnyvale Multi-Purpose Senior Center--820 W. McKinley Ave., Sunnyvale (408/730-7360). Hours: Mon.-Fri. 9am- 4:30pm.

Saratoga Senior Center--19655 Allendale Ave., Saratoga (408/868-1257). Mon.-Fri. 9am-4pm.

Willows Senior Center, 2175 Lincoln Ave., San Jose (408/448-6400). Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8:30am-4:30pm, Sat. noon-4pm.

Other Programs

Live Oak Senior Nutrition and Service Center--19 High School Ct., Los Gatos (408/354-0707).

Los Gatos Neighborhood Center--208 E. Main St., Los Gatos, offers programs via Family Service of Los Gatos (408/354-1514) and the Los Gatos Senior Program (408/354-8700).

Los Gatos-Saratoga Seniors Inc.--550 Hubbell Way, Los Gatos (408/354-3403).

The American Association of Retired Persons holds the following regular meetings: first and third Monday of the month at 10:30am at the Terraces of Los Gatos, 800 Blossom Hill Road (408/265-4750), and the first Wednesday of each month at 11:30am in the Sunnyvale Multi-Purpose Senior Center, 820 W. McKinley Ave., Sunnyvale (408/739-3369).

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This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, October 1, 1997.
©1997 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.