CHARLOTTE — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s eviction moratorium was originally expected to conclude this coming Sunday but, instead, the U.S. Supreme Court ended it at the end of August.
The Supreme Court ruled that if anyone extended the moratorium, it needed to be Congress, not the executive branch.
[ Threat of rising evictions looms in NC; here’s where you can get help ]
“At least some of it, if not all of it,” she said. “Anything would help.”
A renter, who did not want to be identified, told Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke she owes $3,600 in rent by Oct. 21 or she may lose her home. She has a job working in healthcare but said her employer cut her hours and she’s having trouble covering her bills.
She hopes to get help paying rent.
Those who run the RAMP program for Mecklenburg County told Action 9 that since the beginning of the pandemic, they’ve helped 14,321 households to the tune of $40,957,978.
>> Learn more about RAMP here.
If renters don’t qualify, RAMP refers them to other programs, like the City of Charlotte’s Community Relations Tenant-Landlord Dispute Settlement Program and Crisis Assistance Ministry.
Crisis Assistance told Action 9 it hasn’t seen a major surge since the moratorium ended. The organization has helped 2,069 households since that time, which is pretty consistent with its numbers when the eviction ban was in place.
The state’s HOPE program, which covers most of the other counties in the Charlotte area, said that from the middle of May until Thursday, it had cut 107,000 checks for a total of $283.9 million.
The head of the HOPE program, Laura Hogshead, told Action 9 that renters should assume they’re eligible for HOPE money if they make up to 80% of the area median income. In our area, that would be a family of four earning $67,350.
“And for the landlords that are listening, we want to make sure that they know that they can reach out to us and give us their tenant’s name, and then we will encourage that tenant to apply,” Hogshead said. “These are mostly very small landlords, right? These are people who own one or two units and this is a big part of their income, and if they haven’t paid in a year, we want to make sure that they know that this is a check that goes directly to the landlord.”
Where to turn for assistance:
If you live in Mecklenburg County and need help with rent, apply to the emergency housing assistance program, RAMP CLT. You can get money to cover everything you owe, plus as many as three months of rent moving forward.
Anyone who has an eviction court date coming up within 90 days of their application will be placed in the highest priority category. You can also apply if you need help with utilities or even your mortgage.
You can also ask Crisis Assistance Ministry for help with rent or utilities (704-371-3001).
And you can try the City of Charlotte’s Community Relations Tenant-Landlord Dispute Settlement Program.
If you need help in another county, call the NC HOPE program to find out who to contact (888-9ASK-HOPE).
Legal help:
Again, if you rent in Charlotte, the city has a Dispute Settlement Program. Mediators help landlords and tenants work out agreements and avoid court. It’s free and confidential (704-336-5330).
If you rent anywhere, Legal Aid can help. It’s also free and confidential. The group told Action 9 it’s preparing for all of the additional renters who will have to go to court starting next week (866-219-LANC).
Remember, if you’re a renter, your landlord still needs to go to court and get a judge to sign off on an eviction (it’s called “summary ejectment”). Don’t let him or her tell you otherwise.
If you’re facing eviction, specifically for not being able to pay rent, Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke wants to hear from you -- please email him at Action9@wsoctv.com.
(WATCH BELOW: How Charlotte, Meck County are helping those behind on rent or facing eviction)
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