Seniors living in Cornelius apartments say they can’t afford skyrocketing rent

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Seniors at an affordable housing complex say they can’t afford to live there anymore. They spoke with Channel 9 about their struggle to find a new, affordable place to call home.

Deborah Bost believes the Renaissance at Antiquity senior apartments in Cornelius check many boxes. They have great amenities and spacious units.

She only has one complaint.

“It’s gone up every year,” she said. “They told me it would never go up more than 5% until this year. Then it went up 35%.”

“Pretty much everyone here is going to have to move because we just don’t have it. And they’re like me -- where are they going to go?” she asked.

Her neighbor Debra Baron told Channel 9′s Erika Jackson she’s bracing for a 20% increase in her monthly rent.

“Social security pays my rent, that’s for sure,” Baron said.

Bost and Baron told Jackson they’re on fixed incomes. The Social Security Administration bumped up their social security payments by 8.7% this year to keep up with the cost of living.

However, numbers from real estate blog Apartment List show rent went up by an average of 33% in Charlotte’s suburban cities, like Cornelius, since the start of the pandemic.

Can anything be done?

Jackson brought their concerns to Action 9 investigator Jason Stoogenke.

“At the end of the day, the landlord can really do what they want to do,” he said.

Stoogenke said renters don’t have much wiggle room since there’s no rent cap in North Carolina.

He has this advice for neighbors.

“You can try negotiating with your landlord. I believe in strength in numbers,” Stoogenke said. “If you can negotiate with some of your neighbors, get a group together, and approach -- I don’t want to say confront, but approach -- together. Maybe your landlord will be a little more receptive.”

Bost and her neighbors wrote the governor, state representatives, and the attorney general asking for help. She hopes someone will take action.

“There needs to be a law to protect seniors to keep this from happening,” she said.

Jackson reached out to the Renaissance at Antiquity apartments for comment several times. She’s still waiting to hear back.

(WATCH BELOW: Organization works to bring affordable housing to the Concord area)

Organization works to bring affordable housing to the Concord area

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