Renters’ bill of rights needed to stop cycle of evictions

I am an Orange County resident, and an advocate for Black lives in our community. Since the Pulse tragedy, I have worked relentlessly to lift up the voices of the ignored in Central Florida, to hold elected officials and police accountable to the violence they commit on my community. When I see something is wrong, I say it. That’s why everyone knows me as the “Mouth of the South”: I always say exactly what needs to be said.

I am also one of thousands of renters in Florida stuck in a cycle of evictions due to a low-wage economy, unscrupulous landlords and a legal system that denies basic rights to renters.

Since 2016 I have been evicted twice, though I have never been delinquent on my rent. My daughter and I were both facing eviction from our apartments though we were both current on rent payments. The evictions were in retaliation for non-repairs reported to code enforcement. We are ultimately helpless against a system riddled with unfairness and lack of compassion for vulnerable, at-risk populations, including our LGBTQ+ community.

Florida is one of the least affordable states with the highest rate of cost-burdened renters. A 2018 study found only 17 rental units for every 100 extremely lowincome renters in the Orlando area. Meanwhile, our Legislature robbed the Sadowski Trust Fund of $2 billion in affordable housing funds over the last 11 years. After the Legislature finally fully funded this resource this year, Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed $225 million of those overdue dollars.

The Legislature refused to approve a series of bills that would remedy deficiencies in our courts and give renters a bill of rights.

One such bill would have put a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures during emergencies, such as natural disasters. We are now confronting a massive disaster with the coronavirus, which has brought job layoffs and loss of income to millions of people. We have families that have been evicted from their homes, now living in motels with nowhere to go.

Another bill would have removed the pay-to-play court system, to allow tenants to have their day in eviction court without need to pay the money claimed due by the landlord. The Legislature also ignored this bill.

Orange County desperately needs a renters’ bill of rights and a rent control program. Landlords shouldn’t be able to collect rents when they refuse to make repairs to properties often unsafe and unsanitary. I have been denied both.

My first eviction came in the aftermath of a hurricane when my apartment served as a hub and supply resource for area communities that suffered hurricane damage. My two-bedroom apartment had a hole in the downstairs ceiling caused by a leak in the upstairs bathroom. There was no central air and heat; mold spread from the kitchen, bathroom and air conditioning vents.

All of this was reported to the courts, but no consideration was given to me or other families in my complex — some with children. I never had a hearing, though I had proof that my rent was paid on time and no fees were owed.

Again in 2018, I faced eviction while living in a home with faulty electric wiring, low water pressure, no air, no heat and constant stench from sewage coming up through the bathtub and kitchen sinks. My landlord admitted his bias when he told me he would never have rented to me if he had known that my “roommate” was my partner. When I tried to assert my rights to a decent safe place to live by reporting to code enforcement, my landlord had the courts, powerful people and the laws on his side. I was evicted.

I am currently facing evictions from an $800 a month unit I rented in November. I paid $2,400 to move in, covering the last month’s rent and a security deposit. I pointed out deficiencies in the apartment’s plumbing, doors and windows and was told I would be moved to another apartment which never happened nor did the repairs. Despite repeated promises of repairs, no work has been completed. I faithfully paid my rent in full.

In January the landlord said he would cut my rent to $500 a month due to conditions of the unit and would raise it back to $800 once repairs were made. I gave the property manager a money order for that amount. Still no work has been done. In February I got an eviction notice incorrectly saying I hadn’t paid January’s rent.

My calls to the landlord and property manager go unanswered. I have been waiting for a court hearing where I can show my receipts to prove I was not delinquent on my rent at the time eviction was issued. Shortly afterward, the pandemic forced us to be quarantined and the courts to close. Without getting a hearing, I was served with a 24-hour notice to vacate, signed by Sheriff John Mina and delivered on Aug. 19.

I have contacted other tenants with similar issues and reached out to lawmakers and other organizations for help. Though hard fought, the statewide eviction and foreclosure moratoriums and Orange County’s most recent eviction diversion program are only band-aids for a crisis that existed well before COVID-19, and will persist following it. Low-income renters like me need relief and protections from predatory landlords. We need a renters’ bill of rights, we need to have our day in court and a rent control program. We can’t wait any longer.