• Obtener Ayuda
  • Օգնություն ստանալ
  • 获得帮助
  • Cần trợ giúp
  • 도움 요청하기
  • Получите помощь
NLSLA
  • Home
  • Who We Are
    • Our Work
    • Our Staff
    • Our Board
    • History & Milestones
    • News & Press
    • Financial Information
  • Our Services
    • Healthcare
    • Housing
    • Domestic Violence / Family
    • Public Benefits
    • Immigration
    • Clean Slate Initiatives
    • Workers’ Rights
    • Medical-Legal Partnerships
    • Self-Help Centers
    • Disaster Assistance Project
    • Education Rights
    • Legal Workshops & Clinics
    • Apply for Help
    • Resources & Referrals
  • Get Involved
    • Donate
    • Pro Bono / Volunteer
    • Fundraising Events
    • Careers
    • Partners
    • Contact Us
  • Donate
  • Get Help
    • Obtener Ayuda
    • Օգնություն ստանալ
    • 获得帮助
    • Cần trợ giúp
    • 도움 요청하기
    • Получите помощь
  • Search
  • Menu Menu

NLSLA Protects 45,000 Low-Income Renters in Successful Lawsuit

March 11, 2019/in Client Stories, News

Thanks to your support and the dedication of NLSLA’s advocates, more than 45,000 families who depend on Section 8 rental subsidies are now protected from sudden, illegal rent hikes that threatened to push them into homelessness.

In a major victory for low-income renters across the city, NLSLA secured a groundbreaking settlement requiring the Los Angeles city housing authority to increase voucher amounts for renters when it approves landlord rent hikes.

“The housing authority told our clients they were on the hook for massive rent increases that sometimes doubled and even tripled their rent,” said NLSLA Director of Litigation David Pallack. “This settlement ensures the housing authority increases the subsidy at the same time as it allows the landlords to raise the rents.”

The federal government provides rent subsidies to low-income families through the Section 8 program, allowing them to pay about 30 percent of their income for rent while the local housing authority pays the balance. Landlords in the Section 8 program can, periodically, raise rents. To minimize the harm to tenants, federal law requires housing authorities to increase their subsidy. But the city housing authority told tenants they would be responsible for the increased rent until their annual re-examination—leaving them to pay the increase for months.

For NLSLA client Rebecca Gutierrez, that increase amounted to a 300 percent rent hike. Gutierrez, a plaintiff in NLSLA’s successful lawsuit, shares her apartment with her five children and one granddaughter. Every inch of wall is covered with photos of birthdays and graduations. When she was told about the rent increase, she was terrified.

“I felt like crying. I thought ‘What am I going to do?’” Gutierrez went to the housing authority to ask for help, and was handed a list of local shelters. “[They] told me that the owner was entitled to evict me and my kids if I didn’t come up with the rent,” she said. “If I don’t have the money to pay the rent then I’m going to be homeless.”

Today, Rebecca and her neighbors—along with 45,000 section 8 voucher holders in the city of LA—no longer have to worry about losing their housing. And the successful settlement could impact renters in other areas as well.

“We’ve heard from people in multiple jurisdictions across the country that this is happening,” said Deborah Thorpe, supervising attorney for the National Housing Law Project. “At first we thought it might be an issue mostly in heated housing markets like Los Angeles, but we’ve heard it coming up in smaller areas as well.”

To help other jurisdictions deal with the issue, NLSLA has created a roadmap detailing the legal arguments and providing strategies for legal services groups on working with their local housing authorities to implement a similar solution.

“This is a simple solution to a problem with potentially devastating consequences,” Pallack said. “These vouchers were created to ensure low-income families have a place to call home.”

Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Telegram
  • Share by Mail
https://nlsla.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Screen-Shot-2019-03-11-at-11.20.01-AM.png 385 1186 Editorial http://nlsla.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/NLSLA-logo-tag-drop-enfold-600x296.png Editorial2019-03-11 18:22:302020-08-18 17:39:30NLSLA Protects 45,000 Low-Income Renters in Successful Lawsuit
Back to News

Latest News

  • NLSLA and Partners Ensure Food Security for LA’s Most Vulnerable FamiliesFebruary 21, 2023
  • The Faces Behind Our NumbersFebruary 21, 2023
  • Honoring Michael Bierman’s LegacyFebruary 21, 2023
  • Thieves drain millions off CalFresh and CalWORKs recipients’ cards, families wait and taxpayers payJanuary 30, 2023
  • Attorneys: Protect students’ rightsJanuary 30, 2023

News Categories

  • Client Stories (12)
  • Events (1)
  • Helpful Articles (1)
  • News (64)
  • Press (23)
  • Registrations (3)

Get Help

General Legal Assistance
800-433-6251

Health Consumer Center
800-896-3202

Self-Help Legal Access Centers
View locations, hours, services.

More Info

Get Involved

Donate
818-291-1764

Volunteer
818-834-7585

Join Our Team
818-291-1762

More Info

Stay Informed

Connect

linkedintwitterfacebookinstagram

Our Partners

Law Help CA
LSC-Logo

Please let us know if you have any suggestions for improving this website:

  • Obtener Ayuda
  • Օգնություն ստանալ
  • 获得帮助
  • Cần trợ giúp
  • 도움 요청하기
  • Получите помощь
NLSLA’s Health Work Featured in LSC’s ‘Innovations in Legal...lotfollahi-sharreKirkland & Ellis’ Sharre Lotfollahi Joins NLSLA Board
Scroll to top