What is an Oxford House? Oxford House Recovery Homes

Experience of Oxford House has shown that from 8 to 15 members works very well. A house with fewer than six individuals is difficult to maintain because of the small size of the group and the fact that any vacancy causes a greater disruption of the financial welfare of the house. A house must have six or more residents in order to be recognized or chartered by Oxford House. Most homes house between eight and 15 members, with most staying about a year. To begin the admission process, you must fill out an Oxford House application. Once that’s received by the house, you’ll be interviewed by the house members.

Self-run, Self-supported Recovery Houses

During the course of a year more than 4,000 veterans will live in an Oxford House. Some houses are all veterans but primarily veterans are integrated into the normal Oxford House population. Oxford House will not charter a house with fewer than six individuals because experience has shown that it takes at least six individuals to form an effective group. Fortunately, the 1988 Amendments to the Federal Fair Housing Act prohibit discrimination against handicapped individuals.

Oxford House Residential Leases and the Landlord Relationship

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. Since Oxford Houses are self-supported, oxford house traditions they are the most cost-effective way to deal with recovery from alcoholism, drug addiction and co-occurring mental illness. Yes, each state has in place a revolving loan fund that can make loans to cover the first month’s rent and security deposit (up to $4000) to rent a house in a good neighborhood. The loan must be repaid by the group within two years in 24 equal installments.

The Legal and Policy Reasons Underlying Oxford House Group Leases

• The dissatisfaction was in part the realization that we were shirking responsibility for our own lives and in part a resentment of authority.
• The example of Oxford House members going to AA or NA meetings on their own is contagious.
• Generally an individual comes into an Oxford House following a 28-day rehabilitation program or at least a 5 to10-day detoxification program.
• The number of residents in a House may range from six to fifteen; there are houses for men, houses for women, and houses which accept women with children.
• During our drinking and drug use years, and even before, many of us found it difficult to accept authority.

Once more applications are received than there are beds available, the members of any Oxford House will begin to look around for another suitable house. When they find such a house they will bring it up with the other existing Houses and if there is a consensus they will attempt to find the start up money and members to fill the new house. Often several members of an existing House will move into the new House to provide a core group of new members who already know how an Oxford House works. This was the purpose of the first Oxford House established in 1975, and this purpose is served, day by day, house after house, in each of over 1,200 houses in the United States today. At any given time there are about 2,000 Oxford House residents who have served in the military.

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. One of the greatest threats to the sobriety of a recovering alcoholic or drug addict is loneliness. At a time when we acquired a serious desire to stop drinking or using drugs, many of us had lost our families and friends because of our alcoholism and/or drug addiction.

Who is Responsible

Behavior change is key for successful recovery and living in a nice house and a nice neighborhood helps restore pride and self-esteem and provides additional incentive for the member to stay clean and sober. A recovering individual can live in an Oxford House for as long as he or she does not drink alcohol, does not use illicit drugs, and pays an equal share of the house expenses. The average stay is a little over a year, but many residents stay three, four, or more years. In fact, Oxford House creates an environment whereby each member can more fully realize the benefits available from active AA or NA membership. A house full of sober, recovering alcoholics and drug addicts invites informal AA or NA “meetings after the meeting” and each day finds many informal AA or NA meetings before individual members each go off to their regular AA or NA meeting.

• 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.
• Oxford House, Inc. will consider favorably a Charter application whether or not a loan is received from the State or some other outside source.
• In 1975, a tight budget in Montgomery County, Maryland led to a decision to close one of the four county-run halfway houses.
• For those of us who had been in institutions or half-way houses, resentments against authority were common.

Oxford House Recovery Homes

This prohibition requires local governments to make a reasonable accommodation in their zoning laws to enable handicap individuals to effectively deal with their disability. In this respect, they are similar to a college fraternity, sorority, or a small New England town. Officers have fixed terms of office to avoid bossism or corruption of egalitarian democracy. An Oxford house provides recovering addicts a safe, substance-free place to live. The concept and the standardized, democratic, self-supported Oxford House system of operations itself are far more persuasive than any individual. Be honest and straight-forward when sharing the Oxford House concept with others.

Oxford House Inc., is a non-profit, tax exempt, publicly supported corporation which acts as a umbrella organization for the national network of Oxford Houses. It provides quality control by organizing regional Houses into Chapters and by relying heavily upon the national network of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous groups. 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.

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. It is no more difficult than for an ordinary family to find a house to rent. Each Oxford House is an ordinary single-family house with two bathrooms and four or more bedrooms.