To lease a unit. I have been transient or homeless virtually my whole adult life. In 2020, jobless and without prospects in the wake of the hospitality industry's abrupt cancellation and the closure of the National Parks, I took an interest in public housing, specifically in California. Last year I was honored to join the staff of the Alliance For Community Transformations in Mariposa as Housing Navigator, formalizing and validating my self education and previously solo efforts at advocacy and navigation for my homeless and underrepresented peers. To my great dismay, taking that job placed me above the $32k/yr "very low income" threshold in Mariposa and instead of being among the first tenants at Creekside Terrace, I learned just weeks before opening that my application had been quietly removed from contention by an unknown person using an unknown formula to project my income. Incredibly, due to staffing and communication challenges within our partner organizations I wasn't informed until I began questioning why others were receiving move-in dates and I hadn't even seen my lease. AmI'd passed the credit and background checks and my new, modest income was just a hurdle in lease RENEWAL. But the manager with whom I had that understanding had abruptly left the company and her various replacements had nothing constructive or credible to say. It didn't matter, there was now a sizable waitlist. I no longer work in human services and remain homeless.