Las Vegas and Clark County officials rush to rescue Hebron tenants from sudden rent hikes, evictions

Andrew Grim takes pride knowing he’s made rent every month for the past five years after a nonprofit helped him secure an affordable apartment in the Las Vegas Arts District.

“Never been late with my rent one bit,” the 70-year-old man told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “Even when I had my leg taken off — and I was in the hospital for six months — I still paid my rent on time every month.”

But when he paid his $575 rent this month, Grim was shocked when he was told the cost would double in three months. He grew angry when he received a seven-day eviction notice days later, which was later described to him as a clerical error.

Still, Grim said, he doesn’t know how he could afford to pay $1,150 starting in June. He had been homeless for 15 years before the Caridad Inc. nonprofit helped him get his apartment.

He said he gets by on a fixed income of about $1,000, subsidized with limited Social Security benefits and food stamps.

“I can’t afford anything,” Grim said. He’s not the only one.

Rental assistance

After a wave of eviction notices were reportedly posted in dozens of apartment doors last week, some of the Hebron apartment residents received a reprieve Thursday, the deadline for the seven-day notices.

Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley told the Review-Journal on Friday that the city and Clark County had stepped in to provide services, including rental assistance.

In a phone interview, the mayor said the city was in contact with tenants, the property owner and advocates with the Nevada Housing Justice Alliance.

Berkley said they’re trying to help as many residents as possible.

“We’ll try to cover as many as we possibly can, hopefully everybody,” said Berkley about rental assistance. “We understand what’s going on, and we’re trying to keep people from becoming home; so the city and the county are working together. We’re all over this.”

Possible evictions

Residents have been on edge since mid-February, after the complex’s owner, YSBM Investments LLC booted the nonprofit that managed the apartments.

In partnership with other organizations, the Caridad program provided reduced rents for veterans, seniors on fixed incomes and formerly homeless people.

Property owner Yair Ben Moshe said Caridad owed its own back rent. He told the Review-Journal that the amount the nonprofit offered to pay during eviction proceedings was substantially less than accumulated debt, a claim contested by Caridad.

Earlier this month, Moshe said that rents weren’t increasing for now, and that he wasn’t planning to evict anyone else.

The same day he received his eviction notice, Grim said he saw someone post the same document throughout the aging 124-unit complex. “I watched the guy go around to almost every place here,” he said.

Susan Reams, a resident advocate, tallied about 40 notices, including her own. “We are waiting for the shoe to fall,” she said Friday.

The complex has rebranded to On the Boulevard Suites.

Las Vegas Justice Court records show that 12 residents had responded to eviction notices between March 12 through Thursday.

Legal recourse limited

Caridad had set rents between $400 and $1,000, according to nonprofit founder Meredith Spriggs.

Reams, who pays $950, learned that her rent was increasing by about $200. Martin Carrillo said he would soon have to pay $300 more.

Carrillo’s monthly fixed income comprises $1,008 in disability benefits and $215 in food stamps, he said. “How am I going to come up with $1,250 to pay my rent?”

He said he’s lived there for four months and is looking for a new place.

Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada attorney Jordan Savage said there aren’t many recourses available for local renters if a landlord wants to raise rents, as long as proper notices are given and lease agreements are honored.

Social workers with the county and city again showed up to the complex on Thursday, the deadline for the seven-day eviction notices.

Carrillo said he was told his rent for April would be covered. Reams, who hadn’t been able to pay March’s rent, was told she was taken care of after a city assessment.

Grim said that as of Friday, he hadn’t received rental assistance. He was only told about options to relocate, which would still be unaffordable, he added.

“I’m just upset about the whole thing,” he said.

‘Dignity and care’

The new apartments operator, Advanced Management Group, did not address questions about rent increases and eviction notices.

In a statement, company President Bret Holmes reiterated that the group was evaluating the complex’s operational structure to ensure that it remained safe, sustainable and supportive to residents.

He noted the company was collaborating with assistance programs.

“Residents who are able to meet standard rental requirements will have the opportunity to remain at the property,” the statement said. In some cases, it would also work to find alternative arrangements for other residents, it added.

“Our goal is to manage this transition responsibly, with dignity and care for the individuals and families involved,” Holmes said.

Las Vegas said its Neighborhood Services department was offering services.

Resources include: helping residents find new temporary or permanent housing, connecting them with apartments more in line with their budgets, and letting them know about financial aid available for moving costs, according to a Thursday statement.

Berkley said that the current assistance was not a lifetime commitment.

“However, we’re going to do everything we can so that people have housing and that they’re not going to be on the streets,” the mayor said.