Residents at Trinity Park in Livonia are preparing for higher rents after the complex announced it will end its income-based rent program next year. WXYZ Channel 7 reported that Dolores Pollington was notified of a $163 monthly increase, while fellow resident Janice Dixon is facing an $86 increase.
Pollington told WXYZ Channel 7 that the added cost would consume half of her Social Security income. She said she chose Trinity Park because of its income-based rent structure and left another senior-housing waitlist a year earlier to move there. She now is unsure how she will cover the additional expense on a fixed income.
Dixon also told the station that managing her bills on a fixed income is difficult and that finding another home may not be easy. WXYZ reported that Trinity Park's board attributed the switch to flat-rate rents to higher utility, insurance and maintenance costs, along with inflation.
A HUD Loan and a Shift Away From Federal Financing
An email from state Representative Stephanie Young suggested Trinity Park may be moving away from federal financing after paying back a HUD loan, per the same account. The loan's conditions had required the property to offer rental rates matching apartments that received HUD subsidies, a requirement that would presumably lift once the debt is retired.
For residents considering vouchers, the City of Livonia says participating families generally pay no more than 30% of their income toward rent and utilities, subject to eligibility and landlord-participation requirements. The Livonia Housing Commission says its program assists approximately 900 families, a figure that is not specific to seniors or Trinity Park residents. MSHDA's waiting-list information says no statewide Housing Choice Voucher waiting lists are currently open, although some project-based voucher lists may open separately.
Both women say the options elsewhere are grim. Pollington said waitlists at other senior housing facilities typically run two to four years, and Dixon added that some lists aren't even accepting new names right now, saying, “Some of them are closed. It's not even open.”
A Regional Crisis Beyond One Livonia Complex
Kirsten Elliot, president and CEO of Community Housing Network, told WXYZ that the pressure extends beyond Trinity Park as subsidized-housing contracts expire across the region. She said owners may have a financial incentive to move to market-rate pricing when long-term agreements end, noting that "it can be more lucrative to go market rate."
Elliot also described a demographic squeeze: The senior population is projected to grow by about 20% between 2020 and 2030, while construction of housing intended for seniors has not kept pace. She said seniors are becoming an increasingly large share of the homeless population, raising the stakes for residents who lose access to income-based rents.
Federal and academic sources provide broader context but do not, on their own, document Trinity Park's specific financing history. A HUD case study examines an affordable-housing cooperative in Royal Oak, Michigan. Separately, research published on pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov says owners generally may renew expiring Section 8 housing-assistance contracts for one to five years or opt out of renewal.
What Advice Is Being Offered to Affected Residents
Housing advocates cited by WXYZ Channel 7 recommend that residents facing the end of a subsidized lease determine whether they qualify for a Housing Choice Voucher, which may follow them to another eligible unit. They also suggest getting a list of subsidized senior-housing properties from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority and joining waitlists promptly.
Beyond simply signing up, advocates say residents should follow up regularly once they're on a waiting list and reach out to their local Area Agency on Aging for additional housing-resource and advocacy assistance. For Pollington and Dixon, that guidance offers a starting point, even as the clock ticks toward next year's rent changes at Trinity Park.
