Tom's and Ron's Names on Their Lease Was No Token Thing
Tom's and Ron's parents had always been actively involved in their sons' lives. When an opportunity for them to move into the community materialized, they quickly snapped up a chance to rent a house for three months until other housing would be available - along with the funding and staffing that would be needed by the agency that provides supports to their sons. Later, Ron's mother heard about another house that would better suit their needs. This information was passed along to the provider agency and the young men moved into their house.
The new house was great, but services for Ron and Tom proved to be unsatisfactory. After many unsuccessful attempts to rectify the situation, the parents asked for a change of providers. To their amazement, the young men and their parents were informed by their county case manager and the provider agency that because they wished to change providers, Ron and Tom would need to vacate their house. The provider agency claimed that it found and licensed the house and had paid the rent. Therefore, the agency claimed the house for as long as it needed it. Even though the lease had been signed in the consumers' names, and their money had paid the rent, purchased furniture, made payments on a car, and contributed to a household account of $2000, the provider claimed it all. The parents couldn't believe how an agency selected only to provide services could claim control of everything acquired by the people they were hired to serve. They soon learned that in Minnesota the agency could not only make such a claim, but could prevail - with one happy exception.
Ron and Tom lost their furniture, car, and household account to the provider. But because the landlord rented the house to Tom and Ron and not the provider, the young men were not deprived of their home in order to be able to select an agency that could adequately meet their needs and desires. The lesson of the importance of consumer controlled housing was well-learned. The parents are exploring ways of supporting their sons' ownership of property to avoid ever having to go through the stress of those few months. Equally important, these parents don't plan to ever allow another provider to control the resources and decisions in their sons' lives.