Trying to Prevent Eviction
Hi, please bear with me as this is very uncomfortable for me to post. I am at a point where I really have no other choice but to ask strangers for help as I am very close to being on the street due to job loss and no family.
here is my situation:
I am a single person in my 40s with no children that has worked full time and supported myself since I was 15 years old. After being the only person in my family to go to college (on financial aid and my own student loans that I still pay for) and get a degree, I became a journalist and have been in the news industry for the past 15 years. Just a few months ago, I unexpectedly lost my job, partly due to the new AI capabilities, and have been struggling ever since. I was able to just get by on my unemployment income but that has now been exhausted and I still have yet to find another job. I have never experienced this amount of difficulty in finding something in my entire life. I have spent almost every waking hour applying to jobs, not only in my field but in other non-degree positions and I have found nothing . All I keep getting are rejection emails that are auto generated and I’m trying very hard to hold on.
Unfortunately I’m at the point where my apartment management company is now trying to evict me. I have been very communicative with them about my situation and have been paying every little thing I have when I can but they refuse to give me more time after these two months. My bank account is now drained and I can’t even afford to eat at this point since the food assistance I applied for has still been processing for almost two months.
The apartment building is one of many new developments in the area that is modern and only cares about making fast money. I’ve had nothing but issues since living here, including water leaks, excessive noise, lack of security, illegal short term housing that they’ve been doing, mold etc. and they are known for regularly filing evictions shortly after a tenant is late just so they can charge and get the extra late fees and inflated court filing costs (they double what they really cost).
My eviction court date is at the end of May and I am so stressed. I’ve applied for rental assistance but the state funded assistance is full and the other types of assistance all told me I need to have an income to be helped, so that’s not an option. I would move out right now if I had the means but I don’t so I have to play their game. I’ve talked to pro bono lawyers about the issues I’ve had and they told me there’s nothing I can do until I pay the rent owed.
The handful of friends I have don’t have the means to help me and both of my parents are deceased. I also don’t have family who can help so I’m out of options. I have nowhere to go if I do get kicked out and having an eviction on my record for 7 years will destroy me, as I wouldn’t be able to get safe housing even with a job. I’ve worked my entire adult life, have been very responsible and have never been in this position. I absolutely HATE asking for help (as I’ve said I’ve been on my own and supported myself since college) but I really don’t know what else to do.
My goal is to have a bit more time so I can find a job and then move somewhere else or worse case, fight these bastards in court so they can stop not holding up their end of the lease and dragging hardworking people who are paying way too much for rent in the process.
If you have anything at all that you are willing to gift, I will forever be grateful and promise to pay it forward when I’m out of this rut. I am usually the person helping others when my finances are good as I know so many people struggle in this world, but I guess it’s my turn to be on the side of need now and I’m hoping anyone reading this who is in a good financial situation may be a helping hand. Thank you so much.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-for-a-writer-facing-eviction