'I was extremely lucky to live in a garden shed'
Sheyanne Mahy, 26, said she and her husband became homeless in March and had asked the States for help but faced a long waiting list for public housing.
She said she was told there was a one-year wait for housing and they were better off looking in the private market but prices were "way beyond her reach".
Ed Ashton, director of operations for Social Security, States Housing & Inclusion, said: "We want to house people as soon as possible, however, being able to provide accommodation relies on a property becoming available for them."
More news stories for Guernsey
Listen to the latest news for Guernsey
Mrs Mahy said: "I got extremely lucky and was able to stay in a garden shed with my dog with my gran and was there for the duration.
"My husband was able to bounce around different places on the sofa, mostly staying between three or four different people.
"When things got tough we phoned up and questioned again with the States [and said] you know, its starting to get difficult, where are we looking?
"Each time we asked it was back and forth."
Mrs Mahy said she was told there were lots of people in a similar situation to them and they were better off looking privately, but prices were mostly out of reach for her.
After posting on social media sites looking for accommodation, they were able to secure a winter let owned by Lorraine Lane for about 10 weeks.
During a two-week break from the winter let due to a pre-booked guest, the couple said they were able to secure full-time rented accommodation which is where they still live.
Mrs Lane, 68, said she had encountered many islanders who were experiencing housing issues and she never usually used to rent out her property during the off-season.
"Before Covid I didn't do it but now with the crisis I seem to have plenty of interest even for such short slots," he said.
States figures showed there were 66 people on the Band 1 housing list, which are those most in need, but it still takes about a year to secure accommodation.
Jane St Pier, chairwoman of At Home in Guernsey, a charity supporting people experiencing homeless, said: "Everyone is being forced into a very tight funnel.
"The reality is we have lots of pathways into the risk of homelessness right now and we have very few pathways out."
The figures showed there were 40 people waiting for a one-bed properties and they estimated the wait would be nearly two years.
For a two-bed property, it is a 15-month wait and there were 17 people on that list.
For three-bed properties, there are nine people on the list and the wait time was estimated to be about a year, it said.
Mr Ashton, from the States, said: "We want to house people as soon as possible, however, being able to provide accommodation relies on a property becoming available for them.
"Waiting times are also dependent on the type and size of the property required.
"We remain committed to supporting those who are struggling to find suitable housing, and would urge anyone facing such hardship to contact Income Support.'
Follow BBC Guernsey on X and Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk.
Young people driven away by high prices - study
'My landlord's going to have to take us to court'
The retiree helping to house the homeless
At Home in Guernsey
States of Guernsey
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Washington Post
38 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Emmy nominations 2025: See our updating list of the best in TV
Cookie Choices for EU, Swiss & UK Residents We and our 912 partners store and access personal data, like browsing data or unique identifiers, on your device. Selecting I Accept enables tracking technologies to support the purposes shown under we and our partners process data to provide. Selecting Reject All or withdrawing your consent will disable them. If trackers are disabled, some content and ads you see may not be as relevant to you. You can resurface this menu to change your choices or withdraw consent at any time by clicking the Manage Preferences link on the bottom of the webpage . Your choices will have effect within our Website. For more details, refer to our Privacy Policy. If you click 'I accept,' in addition to processing data using cookies and similar technologies for the purposes to the right, you also agree we may process the profile information you provide and your interactions with our surveys and other interactive content for personalized advertising. If you are an EU, Swiss, or UK resident and you do not accept, we will process cookies and associated data for strictly necessary purposes and process non-cookie data as set forth in our If you click 'I accept,' in addition to processing data using cookies and similar technologies for the purposes to the right, you also agree we may process the profile information you provide and your interactions with our surveys and other interactive content for personalized you are an EU, Swiss, or UK resident and you do not accept, we will process cookies and associated data for strictly necessary purposes and process non-cookie data as set forth in our Privacy Policy (consistent with law and, if applicable, other choices you have made).
CNET
5 hours ago
- CNET
Social Security Disability Insurance July 2025: Your Money Is Headed Out
July's SSDI checks are headed to beneficiaries soon. Here's this month's payment schedule. CNET We're nearly half way through the month of July, and Social Security Disability Insurance recipients are set to receive their payments this week or next if they didn't get it in the past two weeks. If you're not sure exactly when you should receive your payment, we have it all covered below for you. The Social Security Administration sends monthly payments to people with disabilities that prevent or limit their ability to work. Depending on their individual situation, others may qualify and can apply for SSDI as well. We'll break down the full SSDI payment schedule for the month of July and how your payment date is calculated so you'll know exactly when you can expect your check. For more, here's what you can do if your last payment never arrived, and here's the Supplemental Security Income payment schedule. If you've had SSDI since May 1997 or earlier, or also receive SSI If you started getting SSDI before May 1997, you'd usually receive your payment on the third day of every month. Note that this isn't always the case, like when the third day falls on a weekend or holiday. For 2025, this will happen in August, so you can expect to receive that month's payment one to two days earlier. If you also receive Supplemental Security Income, you'll fall into this category. You'll receive your SSDI payment on the third of every month and your SSI payment on the typical day, the first of the month. For everyone else, payments are birth date-dependent If you began receiving SSDI after May 1997 and don't also receive SSI, then your payment date is determined by the day of the month you were born. Payments are typically paid out on the second, third and fourth Wednesday of the month. Which Wednesday you get your check breaks down like this: Birthdate between Social Security check date 1st and 10th of the month Second Wednesday of the month 11th and 20th of the month Third Wednesday of the month 21st and 31st of the month Fourth Wednesday of the month Here's when you'll get your SSDI payment in July Here's when your SSDI payment should arrive this month: If you've received Social Security before May 1997 July 3 If your birthday falls between day 1 and 10 of the month July 9 If your birthday falls between day 11 and 20 of the month July 16 If your birthday falls between day 21 and 31 of the month July 23 How does 2025 COLA affect my payment? The COLA for 2025 introduced a 2.5% increase in monthly benefit checks, but exactly how much of an increase will depend on several factors. Any monthly income, how long you've received benefits and what type of benefit you receive can result in a different payment increase. Recipients should have received their COLA notice sometime in December with specific details on their case. A COLA of 2.5% will add about $48 to the average benefits check. For more, don't miss four ways you could lose your Social Security benefits and how to apply for SSI.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Gold award for Jersey Museum exhibit about island
A museum exhibit looking at life in Jersey throughout the years has won an award. Jersey Museum's La Tèrr'rie d'Jèrri - which translates to Being Jersey - received a gold award in the Interior Design Galley category at the Better Future London Design Awards 2025. The exhibit opened in September last year and includes displays of prehistoric mammoth skulls, royal charters and items from 1781's Battle of Jersey between Britain and France and the Nazi occupation during World War Two. Louise Downie, director of curation and experience at Jersey Heritage, who runs the museum in St Helier, said a lot of hard work had gone into setting up the exhibit. Ms Downie added: "The gold award from the London Design Awards is the icing on the cake and is richly deserved by everyone involved in the project." More news stories for Jersey Listen to the latest news for Jersey Follow BBC Jersey on X and Facebook. Send your story ideas to Liberation: 80 years since the Germans left Jersey Battle of Jersey: Events to mark 244th anniversary Victorian Christmas brought to life at museum Story of Jersey exhibition to close after 31 years Jersey Heritage
