Hi there, Jacob here. As most of you know when it comes to asking for help it’s both a rare and difficult thing for me to do. I don’t say this to gain pity or sympathy, but to express the gravity of the situation and how deeply at a loss I am over all of this. During the pandemic I had a roommate that was subletting from me at the time. Initially they seemed fine and were (allegedly) paying rent on time. Unfortunately, it turns out that was not the case. Over the course of 2 years there were missed payments that both my sub-letter and landlords did not communicate to me about. Because the sub-letter had access to our payment portal for rent I assumed these things were being handled. When they moved out I had to eventually contact my landlords and let them know a new sub-letter was replacing them. This is when my landlords then let me know that there was an outstanding balance of $7000 on the account. They told me that the subletter had been in contact with them about multiple missed payments and that they were “handling” it. The subletter disappeared - no social media, no phone number, and ultimately left me on the hook for the balance due to my name being on the main lease. It was then that I was hit with the “Petition Against Non-Payment Dwelling” by my landlords - a court-ordered notice that gave me 30 days to resolve it followed by an additional two weeks eviction notice by the County Marshall. I did what any other person would do in this situation. I freaked out, and then started looking up government assistance. I could either submit a small claims case, but it would take months to potentially settle. Or apply to ERAP (Emergency Rental Assistance Program) for a “one shot deal” loan that is specifically for situations like this. But only one or the other. I submitted applications to ERAP. Three times. And was denied every time. The reason being if I applied as an individual for the loan my income level as a “single” household was still too high above the median income limit. I was transparent with future subletters and asked them for assistance and if they could help me by providing basic info such as income to expand the median income limit of my “household” (which would increase approval odds). I explained that it was a government program that assessed income levels like any other program like SNAP/food benefits. The loan would be under my name and my name only. Any possible “repayment” would come from me. Every subletter either denied help, or moved out, or both. I had no choice but to go at it alone. A personal loan was out of the question (my credit is awful) and finding a cosigner was also a no-go. As for assistance from my family - financially they are in no position to help me and their credit history is also terrible (to put it in perspective, my mom had to file bankruptcy on her business 5 years ago). I was at a loss and did what I could to pay for it myself. But, obviously, working in kitchens has its financial limits and who can realistically come up with $7000 in a month’s time? I am eternally grateful to a friend that recently has helped me with paying off that balance. I felt like the worst of my problems were behind me and that I could breathe again. And based off my correspondence with the landlords it seemed like we had reached an agreement to have it settled now that the balance was cleared. But then last night I came home to another 14-day eviction notice taped to my apartment door. This morning I spent 5 hours in the Civil County Court’s offices downtown trying to get to the bottom of this and why I was being (potentially) kicked out after we had reached a settlement. It turns out there was a SECOND “Petition of Non-Payment Dwelling” submitted for an additional amount of $7607 that my landlords conveniently failed to mention. And that payment settlement? According to the judge’s clerk I met with it means absolutely nothing because it wasn’t a court-ordered agreement or correspondence. So while I have records of that payment and my landlords accepted it, there’s still an outstanding balance. All because they submitted the balances under two separate case index numbers. At this point I am at a complete loss. What I had thought was finally stable footing that I had landed turned out to be the opposite. I would cut my losses and move but I would inevitably receive a major ding on my credit report (labeled as an eviction ding) that would damage it further. On top of that, my security deposit would not be refunded back to me, and I have neither the time nor resources to financially make a sudden move to a new place. I know times are tough for everyone. But I am resorting to this page and this LFEBridge because I have run out of options and shaken every damn tree at this point. All I ask is that if you can donate anything, literally anything, I would be forever indebted and appreciate your help. If you can’t, even just sharing this would be tremendously helpful. At the moment I have a court date scheduled for August 10th where I have to present my case. Temporarily the eviction has been put on hold due to me filing an “Order to Show Cause” that halts it. However, the eviction date listed is for August 8th and my court date is August 10th, so really I only have managed to buy myself 48 hours. Attached below are the documents I have received. The balance is listed and condensed into a three month period for “presentation purposes” according to the clerk I met with today. It’s a way of making the balance due “itemized” and presentable to the court when submitting a petition. The other documents are the OSC (Order to Show Cause) and the eviction notice. Thank you for taking the time to read this, to share, to donate. Things are incredibly precarious right now but I am remaining hopeful that I can resolve this with some help. Best, - J.N.
Artículos relacionados
