Flooding is common in many colonias, making the existence of privies an additional health problem. Education levels are quite low and school dropout rates are high. Typical family size is 5-6 people. Entire families live in these temporary shelters while they build a house on the property. Many colonia residents buy inexpensive rural lots and set up temporary shelters.
Most colonia housing is self-built.
Colonia housing is built incrementally as money and time become available. Colonia housing rarely meets established building codes. As there is no water service, colonia residents must store their water in bottles. More information about colonias can be found in the Colonias Factbook .