House & Chapter Literature & Guidelines » Oxford Houses of Virginia

The rights of recovering alcoholics and drug addicts to live in Oxford Houses located in good neighborhoods are well established. A memorandum summarizing cases involving Oxford House precedents under the federal Fair Housing Act entitled Legal Memo Zoning can be downloaded. The HUD Complaint Form for filing a discrimination complaint with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development can be download here.

• Oxford Houses are democratically self-run by the residents who elect officers to serve for terms of six months.
• All aspects of Oxford House operations, from the acquisition of the house to the acceptance or dismissal of members, is carried out under democratic procedures.
• Yes, the prospective residents of the House can find a suitable house, rent it, put up the security deposit and pay the first month’s rent themselves.
• Some sober living homes have exercise equipment, fitness areas, recreational space, pools and cookout areas.
• For those of us who had been in institutions or half-way houses, resentments against authority were common.

This is understandable since as many as 80% of the current jail/prison population are alcoholics and drug addicts. Oxford Houses seem to stop the recycling in and out of jail or treatment facilities. There is no reason to believe that society as a whole had the responsibility to provide long-term housing within a protected environment for the alcoholic and drug addict.

Self-Help for Sobriety Without Relapse

Oxford House follows a rule of law in making certain that its time-tested system of operation works well. At the same time Oxford House follows laws in the community at large including those that prohibit others from discriminating against the existence of the individual Oxford House. Establishing a sober lifestyle is difficult during the early stages of recovery. You need somewhere safe you can go after treatment, a place where you’ll be free of triggers and surrounded by social support.

While Oxford House is not affiliated with AA or NA, its members realize that recovery from alcoholism and drug addiction can only be assured by the changing of their lifestyle through full participation in AA and NA. In most communities, the members of those organizations help Oxford Houses get started and report any charter compliance problems to the national office of Oxford House World Services with respect to a particular house. As soon as Oxford House Inc., hears of such problems, it takes corrective action because the good name of Oxford House is an important factor in the recovery of thousands of individuals. During early recovery for alcoholism and drug addiction, some members had to leave an institution in order to make room for an alcoholic or drug addict just beginning the recovery process. Other members were asked to leave half-way houses in order to make room for a recovering alcoholic or recovering drug addict who was ready to move into a half-way house.

House & Chapter Literature & Guidelines

An American Journal of Public Health study compared individuals who lived in a sober living home to those who only received outpatient treatment or attended self-help groups. Those who have benefited from an Oxford House have acquired enthusiasm for the Oxford House concept. In their what is an oxford house enthusiasm, they have been anxious to share Oxford House with any recovering alcoholics and drug addicts who want to establish an Oxford House in their community. The charter of each Oxford House requires that an Oxford House meet certain minimum requirements of Oxford House, Inc.

The average stay is about a year, but many residents stay three, four, or more years. During the last days of our drinking or using drugs, most of us ceased to function as responsible individuals. We were not only dependent upon alcohol and/or drugs, but were also dependent on many others for continuing our alcoholic and/or drug addicted ways. When we stopped drinking or using drugs, we began to realize just how dependent we had become. For those of us who had been in institutions or half-way houses, resentments against authority were common.

Oxford House and The Rule of Law

Sober living homes are known for strictly enforcing rules, and violations usually result in eviction. During 2010, approximately 24,000 individuals lived in an Oxford House for some or part of the year. Of that number 4,332 relapsed [19%] and were expelled, while 7,668 moved out clean and sober.

This prohibition requires local governments to make a reasonable accommodation in their zoning laws to enable handicap individuals to effectively deal with their disability. One can only be dismissed from an Oxford House because of drinking, using drugs, non-payment of rent, or disruptive behavior. Every opportunity should be given to a member who needs professional help to see that he obtains it. Repayment from those start-up loans assures the continuation of the revolving fund to enable other new houses to get started — just as repayment of loans to chapters permits the same resources to be used again and again.

Rent and the various utilities paid by residents vary by location, but the cost of living in an Oxford House is usually no more than what it would cost to live elsewhere. Plus, this option may actually be cheaper than other housing environments given the fact that residents split the household costs among several residents. Nearly all members of Oxford House utilize the AA and/or NA program in order to obtain and keep a comfortable sobriety. However, an Oxford House relies primarily upon example for assuring a high percentage of AA and/or NA attendance from its members.

Alcoholism and drug addiction are international problems and Oxford Houses can provide recovering individuals the opportunity to become comfortable enough in sobriety to avoid relapse. During our drinking and drug use years, and even before, many of us found it difficult to accept authority. Many individuals in society are able to abide by the strict letter of any rule, regulation , or law. Alcoholics and drug addicts seem to have a tendency to test and retest the validity of any real, potential, or imagined restriction on their behavior. By the time many of us had stopped drinking, we had lost jobs; we had lost families, and some of us either had no place to live or no place to live which was not an invitation to start drinking again. Oxford House was founded not only to put a roof over our head, but also to create a home where the disease of alcoholism was understood and the need for the alcoholic to stay away from the first drink was emphasized.