Dallas lawyer takes up mission to help people avoid eviction 570news.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from 570news.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Reed Saxon / AP
Affordable housing has become a hot-button issue in Greater Cincinnati over the last few years, garnering media attention, promises from elected officials and no small amount of debate.
That debate is culminating in a ballot initiative called Issue 3 that is before Cincinnati voters May 4. If passed, it would require the city to spend $50 million a year on affordable housing.
Research has shown rising rents and big gaps between the number of available rental housing units and area residents, especially those with low incomes looking for housing they can afford in Hamilton County. Some skeptics question the exact number of units needed, however, and there is little consensus on how to address that need.
WKBT
April 26, 2021 8:00 AM Liz Weston
Posted:
Updated:
Getty Images
Congress has appropriated more than $46 billion in emergency assistance to help cover back rent and utilities owed by struggling renters. But getting a share of that money isn’t automatic or guaranteed.
Not everyone who’s behind on their rent qualifies for help. In addition, some states and cities require more paperwork than others, which can make accessing the funds more difficult. Also, landlords and tenants typically must work together to apply for the aid, and some landlords are refusing to help.
For now, most renters are protected by various eviction bans at national, state and sometimes local levels but someday those will end. In the meantime, owing your landlord can lead to credit damage, collections calls and lawsuits. If you’re behind on your rent, you’d be smart to start exploring your options for dealing with this debt.
Homelessness and Extreme Weather Are Converging Climate Crises
Terri Domer visits the riverside encampment in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where she weathered last August s derecho.
Andrew McCormick / NBC News
This story originally appeared in
NBC News and is republished here as part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.
Cedar Rapids, Iowa Terri Domer knows well what a brewing storm looks like.
Domer, 62, an Iowa native, has spent her life watching thunderstorms gather and tornadoes dash across rolling hills. Last August, when the midday sky darkened over the riverside homeless encampment where Domer and four other people spent most nights built on a sandy bank near downtown, under tall trees she quickly set about covering up their supplies.