(WSVN) - To say Betty struggles to get by is an understatement. But she was surviving — until her landlord raised her rent in the middle of her lease. That’s not legal, is it? Well, it’s why she called Help Me Howard with Patrick Fraser.
To understand Betty’s problem, you just have to do the math. Begin with her social security check.
Betty Crenshaw, struggling to get by: “I get $928 from social security.”
Subtract the $891 for her rent, which includes lights and water. Now subtract around $35 for her phone, leaving her with $2 spending money each month.
Betty Crenshaw: “So far, I’m managing. I get $100 in food stamps, so that takes care of food. It don’t buy a lot, but it’s enough for me.”
Betty was getting by, and proud of it.
Betty Crenshaw: “I’ve never gotten evicted from an apartment, even when I was younger with children. I always paid what I needed to pay.”
But then devastating news for someone scraping by. In the middle of her apartment lease, Betty was told her rent was going up $18 more, to $909.
Betty Crenshaw: “I wouldn’t be able to have a telephone. That’s the one thing I need ’cause I live by myself.
Betty went to the rent office to explain, you can’t raise the rent.
Betty Crenshaw: “The owners are doing it. I said, ‘But they can’t do this ’cause I have a lease.’ ‘They can do whatever they want. They’re the owners. They can go up again next month if they want!'”
Eighteen dollars a month. You might spend that on one meal, but for Betty, it’s the difference between a home and being homeless.
Betty Crenshaw: “I was calm with her because I don’t like to controvert with people, and I don’t use profanity. I’m too ladylike for that.”
Inside, though, Betty was shaken. She had to be hospitalized, worried about surviving but convinced her landlord is wrong.
Betty Crenshaw: “That’s a binding contract, according to the law, so how are you going to give them a lease and then come on back and break your own lease?”
Well, Howard, can a landlord raise the rent in the middle of a lease?
Howard Finkelstein, 7News legal expert: “Under a normal lease, you absolutely cannot raise the rent during the lease. But Betty’s landlord is part of a federal program that gives them a tax credit for keeping the rent at a restricted rate. In that program, the federal government puts a cap on the rent. In Betty’s lease, there is clause that says if the landlord is under the cap, they can raise the rent during the lease if they give 30 days notice.”
The clause Howard mentioned in the 23-page lease is on page two, paragraph 15. It reads, “The owner may increase the rent to the maximum allowable amount.”
For Betty’s apartment, that would be $1,186.
With the $18 increase, it’s at $909 — still under the cap, meaning more rent increases could be coming for Betty.
Betty Crenshaw: “Forgive me, but like I said, this is getting to me.”
Betty never saw that clause in the lease.
Betty Crenshaw: “If I had read that, I wouldn’t have signed it.”
Betty struggled to get by before. That $18 hike in her rent has now made it almost impossible to survive.
Betty Crenshaw: “And like I said, right now the bottom has fallen out of the barrel, so I have nothing to scrape. I’m doing the best that I can with the little bit of money that I do get. Like I said, this is starting to get to me. I’m sorry about that.”
Meeting people like Betty reminds you how hard it is for some people to make ends meet, and how lucky most of us are to have enough to pay our bills.
We are not going to walk away from Betty. We are working on a thing or two and trying to find people to donate a few dollars to help her. If you want to donate money, you can make out a check out to Betty Crenshaw and then mail it to:
Help Me Howard
1401 79th Street Causeway
Miami Fl 33141
Housing a problem that’s restricting you? Ready to evict it from your life? Contact us. We’ll be happy to donate our time and give you some peace of mind.
CONTACT HELP ME HOWARD:
Email: helpmehoward@wsvn.com
Reporter: Patrick Fraser at pfraser@wsvn.com
Miami-Dade: 305-953-WSVN
Broward: 954-761-WSVN
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