Housing Authority fails to pay tenant's rent for 3 months in Wake Co., could be forced to move

WAKE COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) -- A Wake County renter will possibly be forced to leave the home that she rents due to delayed and missed rental payments from the housing authority. Nancy Powell has rented a house in Wendell that she says she's enjoyed living in for more than a year, but now may be forced to leave due to no fault of her own.

"My rent needs to be paid, like, if I lose my place to live, I will be living in my car with cats," Powell adds.

Powell has paid her portion of the rent, but for the last three months, her landlord confirmed he has not received the portion of rent from the Wake County Housing Authority for Powell's Housing Choice Voucher. She adds, "I've been to my local housing authority, and they don't have answers."

Powell says the problem first started earlier this year with delayed rental payments and then turned to no rental payments for March, April, and May. She's gone in person to the Wake County Authority's office, but no answers on when her rent will get paid. "I don't understand how this can fail.

Powell said her landlord has been patient with her but did send her an email stating in part that he's done everything he can to pursue some sort of resolution, but unfortunately, has gotten nowhere. Since Powell's lease is month-to-month, he stated in the email that the lease is terminated at the end of the month, and she needs to be out.

Powell says she started to feel pain, so she reached out to ABC11 Troubleshooter Diane Wilson. "Sometimes reaching out to the news is the only way things get done."

Wilson got involved, and it did take a lot of work as Powell's case is complicated. Wilson reached out to HUD, which referred Wilson to Powell's local housing authority. The Wake County Housing Authority Interim Executive Director thanked Wilson for bringing this to his attention and said they were dedicated to resolving it swiftly and effectively.

Once he looked into it, he said Powell is a portability participant from the Indian Housing Authority, which he said means Wake County Housing Authority is unable to release any housing assistance payment until Powell's initial public housing authority processes the payment to Wake.

It took a few days, but Wake confirmed they had Powell's funds for her Housing Choice Voucher, and they sent her landlord rent payments for March, April, and May. Powell tells Wilson she is relieved for her help getting those rental payments made. She said to Wilson, "If it wasn't for you, this wouldn't have been solved, and I'm so grateful."

Despite those rental payments being made, it's unclear if Powell will be able to stay at her current home after May 31st. While Wake Housing Authority did catch up in rental payments, it did not include the late fees the landlord charged. Plus, Powell says it's not known if future payments from her housing choice voucher will continue to be late each month.

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