Eviction ban ends in 2 months; some renters say they’re still waiting for NC Hope money

The eviction moratorium will end two months from Friday. Many renters who haven’t been able to pay rent have been able to stay in their homes because of it. But with the way things are now, come June 30, their landlords can evict them.

Many applied for the NC HOPE program to help pay their rent. Some told Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke that the state approved them months ago but that they’re still waiting for the money.

One renter, who asked Stoogenke not to use her name, said: “Everything was OK in the beginning. Everything was just fine.” She said she had a job and was paying rent, but then she got sick. “Couldn’t breathe. Sick. Hospitalized. Couldn’t work, so [I] wind up not going back. It’s just a roller coaster ride downhill,” she told Stoogenke.

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She said she couldn’t afford rent anymore. She said she paid what she could -- even her stimulus money -- and that her landlord took partial payments (which many don’t do).

“This is my home. I don’t have nowhere else to go,” she said.

She said Crisis Assistance Ministry helped her. And she applied for the NC HOPE program. The state approved her, promising to pay her landlord $3,800. “I thought everything was OK. I had a little bit of relief,” she said.

>> See our county-by-county resource guide for rental, mortgage and utility assistance

That was on Jan. 15. But 3 1/2 months later, she said she was still waiting.

“It’s almost like this paper isn’t even valid almost,” she said.

“I feel like my back is against the wall,” she said. “It’s just like a merry-go-round with no answers. Nobody has no answers. It’s stressful.”

Stoogenke contacted the state for the renter in this article, and she said the state emailed her that it’s going to overnight the $3,800 to her landlord Monday.

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People with the HOPE program told Stoogenke that they agreed to pay $133.2 million in rent and utilities to help about 36,335 households. They said they paid out $129.4 million as of Thursday, which amounts to about 97% so far.

Note: The HOPE program is planning a second round in the coming weeks. Stoogenke will keep you posted on when and how to apply.