GREENSBORO, N.C. — The North Carolina Housing Coalition says around 16,000 people in Guilford County had eviction notices filed against them in the last year. Now, Greensboro groups are asking city leaders to help.
What you need to know
The American Friends Service Committee is asking the city council to contribute $1.5 million to rental assistance for families fighting evictions
Terell Dungee is a community organizer for AFSC
Vanessa Ratliffe received assistance when she was going to be late on rent
Terell Dungee is a community organizer with American Friends Service Committee (AFSC). He helps those in need of rental assistance, like Vanessa Ratliffe, who has been renting her current home.
Ratliffe says she’s never missed a payment.
“Some months I pay my rent a month in advance and pay two months,” she said. “Last month came and I payed my rent, but I said 'your going to be late next month.'”
After she helped her granddaughter pay her rent, she couldn’t pay her own, and that’s when she reached out to Dungee.
He was able to secure her money that would allow her to stay up to date with her rent payment.
Greensboro City Council has now adopted a budget, and $440,000 will be set aside for the Tenant Education Advocacy Mediation (TEAM) program.
“With this program, we're trying to educate more people that this service is for you, regardless if you feel like, oh, you're just $50 away from paying a rent or you're like $2,000 in the hole. We want to let people know these services are paid through our money, through our taxes,” Dungee said. “It’s important that we take advantage of them so that we can take care of ourselves.”
After Dungee helps secure money, he said he feels grateful to be able to help out people in his community.
“It feels really good that we're able to help, but it still just makes me think of what it would be like if this was something that was already in place to help more people or more funding was available,” he said.
Additionally, AFSC is asking city council to include a contribution of $1.5 million to rental assistance for families fighting evictions and providing tenants information about the TEAM program with their court summons.