Missionary Apartments

I heard that missionaries are going to start living in members homes instead of having apartments? Does anyone know about this? I think its a great idea and will save a lot of money in the missionary fund. My mission for example could have used way cheaper homes. I wouldn't have mind living with all the other squatters in the biggest slums in the world. The only thing i thought was appropriate was we usually had security guards.

Missionaries only spend a few hours a day in their apartments anyways.

falisrm wrote:I heard that missionaries are going to start living in members homes instead of having apartments? Does anyone know about this? I think its a great idea and will save a lot of money in the missionary fund. My mission for example could have used way cheaper homes. I wouldn't have mind living with all the other squatters in the biggest slums in the world. The only thing i thought was appropriate was we usually had security guards.

Missionaries only spend a few hours a day in their apartments anyways.

Missionaries have been living in members homes in our area for as long as I can remember. In fact, my wife and I hosted the Missionaries for a couple years. Around here, it is $1500/mo for the smallest appartment possible, which I'm sure contributed to the decision to use members as resources.

Brad O.

falisrm wrote:I heard that missionaries are going to start living in members homes instead of having apartments? Does anyone know about this?

FYI, the stake reimburses the host family for utility expenses. Currently it is $75/month in the US. The check is written from a special category that is reimbursed by the Church, so there is no actual cost to the stake.

can members make plans with the mission president and the missionaries to host if they want? Is there anything else that members can do to contribute to lowering costs? I'm sure missions are looking for ways to living costs.

falisrm wrote:can members make plans with the mission president and the missionaries to host if they want? Is there anything else that members can do to contribute to lowering costs? I'm sure missions are looking for ways to living costs.

There is a list of requirements for the apartment -- issues with privacy, what children the host family has, etc.

I know in our area that missionaries appreciate getting rides with members where possible, as even those with cars have limited miles that they are allowed to travel each month. And of course, having members along to participate in lessons is always helpful.

Our mission (Colorado Denver North) was one of three missions that piloted this, starting three years ago. Today, 100% of our missionaries are housed in member homes. There was a letter sent out to Mission and Stake Presidents about qualifications for housing but basically, it is only being implemented in North America, and host families cannot have any children under 12 in the home, no teenagers or single people of the opposite sex in the home. Though the letter isn't exactly clear, older single sisters can house the missionaries, if the Bishop and Stake President approve.

You do NOT want to ask for volunteers over the pulpit for two reasons: You'll get volunteers that you don't want to host the missionaries, and it's not a volunteer thing anyway - it's a calling, just like any other: the Bishop should call the host(s) into his office and extend a call. You're asking them to live the law of sacrifice. They are reimbursed $75 by the stake per month for misc. expenses, but it is NOT rent.

We've found that it is far easier to find 6 host families at a time than it is one at a time. If you only ask one at a time, they are reluctant to accept, as there is no end date, and they will worry about having them forever. (Some like having missionaries, but not everyone does.) If you have many hosts all arranged, you can set up a cooperative, where everyone takes turns for 3-6 months, and you rotate through. This is acceptable to most people. It also allows you to have backups available in case grandkids come to visit for a few days.

We look at it as a blessing to both the missionaries and the members. Missionaries are more obedient, are happier, and we find out about problems before they become big problems. The financial side is just an additional benefit. The mission president gets about one phone call a month from hosts with issues, out of 70 host families.

Brian, that is an excellent description of the program (I have also read the letter), and your added insights will help us as we try to implement it in our stake.

Our challenge is that we just do not have very many members with an extra room that do not have children or teenagers that disqualify, at least according to the requirements in the letter.

What is the demographic of the families who are called? Are they mostly older couples whose children are no longer at home? Or are we not thinking far enough out of the box here?

lajackson wrote:What is the demographic of the families who are called? Are they mostly older couples whose children are no longer at home? Or are we not thinking far enough out of the box here?

The demographic varies a lot - some hosts are recent empty nesters; some are elderly couples; we have a fair amount of widows, who like knowing there is someone else in the home. I think widows are often overlooked, but are great hostesses. We rely heavily on Bishops and Stake Presidents to know if any host is suitable, including a widow. We also have some wards that host two sets of missionaries because another adjacent ward can't find anyone - yet.

Some of our stakes are full of younger members, so it is harder for them to find host familes. It sounds like your stake may be in this situation. Many of our stakes, though, are older, and have many potential host families in each ward.

Just a few weeks ago, I was talking to the stake president in our 'youngest' stake, and he said he would rather go without missionaries than go back to housing them in apartments, as it is such a blessing to the members, and recognized the importance it was to the members of his stake to host the missionaries.

At first, it took a big leap of faith to find host families. Many stakes said they wouldn't be able to find anyone, but our mission president just started cancelling leases. Many times, the wards hadn't found anyone, with just two weeks before the lease expired, but homes were (miraculously) found in every instance. Now, stakes are much more comfortable with it.

bcpalmer60 wrote:Some of our stakes are full of younger members, so it is harder for them to find host familes. It sounds like your stake may be in this situation.

We have mostly active duty military, with hundreds of servicemen deployed. Nevertheless, your ideas will be very helpful as we take a fresh look at this challenge. Thanks again for your inputs.

I know growing up most of the missionaries already lived in properties of members. They built additions for missionaries or they lived in a nice barn. Too bad i won't qualify to host the missionaries. I think its a great idea and i hope it continues to do well.

This is a great idea which can bring many blessings to those willing to "sacrafice" by providing housing for the full time missionaries. However, having reviewed the list of requirements by the Church, it is almost impossible to meet the criteria. My husband & I are emptynesters & would welcome the missionaries into our home. That being said, we don't meet the "housing requirements" i.e. separate entrances, etc. Very few homes in the country have a separate entrance to their home with the exceptions of home built with a downstairs basement apt or a "inlaw" wing. I just don't think those types of homes are that available. Perhaps the rules have changed but the last time I saw them, several of us (all retired professonials & empty nesters) could not meet the requirements.

I have a few thoughts on this. I am in one of the stakes that hosted this pilot program of housing missionaries in member's homes, and I have made some observations about what has happened. First of all, the housing guidelines are the ideal, but often that ideal was not achieved. What ended up happening in many cases was that the bishop recommended a family that was willing to have the missionaries even though the recommendations weren't able to be fulfilled exactly. The stake presidency approved the exceptions for the time being and it generally worked out well.

One difficulty with posting those standards is that you can't publish less than what you would really like, but if what you really want cannot be found, sometimes you have to accept something really close as long as it is approved. Ultimately it is up to the bishop to make the recommendation within the ward and the stake/mission to approve it. Don't immediately disqualify yourself if one or two items are missing.

On a farther looking note, if I am blessed with an opportunity to purchase a home eventually that has a mother-in-law apartment, I will consider that with the possibility of it eventually serving to help the missionaries. It would serve very well for the actual mother-in-law that is currently living with us also. What I am trying to say is, if people have the means, and know that it would be a service to helping the missionaries, it might be a factor in considering what home to buy, or how to build a house. Those that don't have the means, or are in a house that don't quite fit the requirements shouldn't feel either pressured or left out because they didn't have that consideration previously. The list is the ideal, and unlike standards of worthiness, certain elements of this list can be prayerfully overlooked. However, like a calling, we may express our willingness, but we cannot make that call ourselves.

The program has been a blessing in our ward, and although with three young girls in our small home I don't expect we will be able to participate any time soon, I hope to eventually have a home that will facilitate having the missionaries eventually when we do fit the profile.

And linking it to tech? Would I be stretching it by asking how to look for a home online with a mother-in-law/missionary apartment?

spitfire wrote:This is a great idea ... However, having reviewed the list of requirements by the Church, it is almost impossible to meet the criteria. My husband & I are emptynesters & would welcome the missionaries into our home. That being said, we don't meet the "housing requirements" i.e. separate entrances, etc. .

The requirements have changed. The missionaries do not require separate entrances, separate kitchen, or even a separate bathroom (though both parties will want this, if possible.) You have to work out when they can have access to the kitchen and bathroom, but these are minor details.

They need their own bedroom, and a place to study. The place to study can be anywhere in the house where the host can agree to give them some privacy. They need one shelf in the pantry, and one shelf in a fridge. Other than that, there aren't a lot of other requirements.

In addition to being heavily involved in getting this program running in our mission, we hosted sister missionaries for a couple months. We had a 15 year-old daughter at home, and they shared a bathroom, but that wasn't a problem.

The missionaries aren't normally allowed to be home alone with the opposite sex, of course, but an exemption is made for the hostess (or host for Sister Missionaries). This is why it is so important that the Bishop and Stake President are involved in the approval process. We haven't had any problems in the two and half years we've been doing it. Widows make excellent hostesses.

We have been asked by our Bishop if we would be willing to host some Missionaries. We said yes. Last Sunday, the Bishop asked when we could host some Sisters. Now I am a bit worried. We have an underused basement with a bedroom, bath and a large room that could be used for study or whatever else. The bedroom has a twin bed with a trundle and a small closet. The large room has tables, chairs, etc. There is also a small refrigerator and a large freezer there. There is a laundry room which we would share.

My problem comes with knowing what furniture we need to supply. The beds are set but not much else. Are we to supply a bureau? How about dishware, silverware, pots pans, etc.

What is expected of us?

I would suggest you contact your local mission office to receive the latest policies and guidelines.

Looking in surprise ax