FORT WAYNE, Ind. (Fort Wayne's NBC) -- Beginning Monday, the CDC's moratorium on evictions will end -- meaning if you're behind in your rent, your landlord can go to court to evict you.
Help is available but you need to act now.
"What we are looking at is whether there will be a surge of evictions come next week," Indiana Legal Services' Andrew Thomas said.
Thomas says once the CDC's eviction moratorium expires, renters will no longer have a grace period to get their finances together in order to keep their living space.
"The rent is due. It is not a free pass to back rent. The back rent is not forgiven under the moratorium," he said.
So if a tenant is not prepared to pay up, a landlord can file for an eviction hearing in Small Claims Court.
The tenant will be served papers showing a court date, which could happen as soon as 10 days after they get the notice.
That hearing will determine whether the landlord will get possession of the property and have the tenants removed.
"If a tenant is even just maybe one month's rent behind, courts will, in many cases, be obliged to evict tenants if the landlord decides to do so," Thomas said.
He says that's why it's crucial to immediately contact any of the agencies offering rental assistance and let your landlord know you did.
Allen Superior Court Judge Jennifer Degroote says those resources can be a game-changer.
"We have those in place for Allen County, we have those in place for the city of Fort Wayne. And they are providing assistance up to 12 months of past due rent and including some forward, maybe three months forward of rent as well as help with utlities. So if a tenant and a landlord have not explored those options, they really need to do that," she said.
For example, Fort Wayne's emergency rental assistance program has already doled out nearly $5 million to more than 1400 households, and another half-million has just been added.
Thomas is concerned that if people don't apply for programs like that, a lot of them will soon find themselves with no place to live.
"An eviction can affect just about every part of your life because you won't be able to find new housing. And if you become homeless or even find substandard housing then all that stress can affect whether or not you can get jobs, whether or not you're able to have healthy relationships with your family members, whether or not you can have good mental and physical health," he said.
He says if you don't attend your court hearing, you will be ordered evicted by default so make sure to show up.
Renter's assistance: if you live in Fort Wayne, or if you live elsewhere in Indiana.
Legal help: Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic or (260) 456-8972 and Indiana Legal Services or (844) 243-8570.
Also visit Indiana's Landlord/Tenant Settlement Program.
Other numbers: Brightpoint at (800) 589-3506; Catholic Charities at (260) 422-5625, ext. 247; Lutheran Social Services at (260) 426-3347.
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July 30, 2021 at 05:45AM
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CDC moratorium on evictions runs out this week; landlords able to file in small claims Monday - Fort Wayne's NBC
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