You totally get it. Had no idea that Austin had this type of subculture, too, but glad to hear that other cities relate.

I live in Austin Texas at a place called The Willows,.....so your assesmentt of the hotels and residents were right on the mark; here on our special little place on earth, we have our own wide variety of 'personalities',.......we live in a place of true reality,where the folks with pickey fences know absolutely nothing about.

Might it help to know that these kind of hotels are very common in many major US cities with a large SSI Disabled population who get monthly checks for being mentally ill? If you don't know about that, I can see how you would get disoriented. The residents DO pay, but they can't afford much and can never accumulate enough for a deposit on an apartment nor pass a credit check, so this is as good as it gets for them. They also do form these odd "families" and give each other "gifts" of stuff they find in the trash, like Tom-Tom does as the "beggar's butler." The characters are very authentic here, if you are familiar with that population.The slumlords who own these firetraps are very rich indeed and pay off local inspectors rather than repair their properties. Since that film was made, they are now trying to push out the $250/mo residents so they can remodel and attract yuppies. There is no plan for what to do with the SSI recipients, as there is not enough Section 8 housing to take them all in. It is quite a battle now. Hope that helps with the plausibility factor.