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Landlord calls I-Team 8 to help tenant get Indyrent rental assistance

A rental home in Indianapolis is shown Dec. 3, 2021. (WISH Photo)

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — One woman in a house on the near east side has called it home for many years.

Due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, she was unemployed for several months and fell behind on her rent. She and her landlord both have gone to the city government’s Indyrent for help and heard nothing back.

Michelle Cliffton says she is three months behind on her rent. Her landlord is not threatening to evict her; in fact, he has gone above and beyond and contacted I-Team 8.

Cliffton said, “So far no one has reached out to us I have sent in all the documents everything we are supposed to send them and they still have not reached out.”

About her landlord, Cliffton added, “He didn’t say he was going to evict me. He said we were just going to try again, you know, and see why they denied us.”

Clifton says she has filed all of the appropriate paperwork with the city; however, there was some confusion over which tax documents were needed for the application.

Her landlord is a schoolteacher and lives outside of the Indianapolis area. He told I-Team 8 by email that the city denied his tenant’s claim twice.

I-Team 8 wrote to the Indyrent staff Thursday via email — over a dozen phone calls and voicemails had gone unanswered — and was informed that there is no way to apply a third time and no way to overturn the two denials, which means two strikes and you’re out.

Cliffton has appealed the decisions both times and says the ordeal has made her nervous. “It is kind of throwing me off because I’m lost and behind. I have never been behind on my rent,” Cliffton said. 

The city has told I-Team 8 that Indyrent program has performed well and handed out close to $80 million to 33,000 applicants, but Cliffton isn’t one of those people. The city also says it has approved more than $7 million in rent assistance in November alone.  

The city is aware of Cliffton’s issue and sent I-Team 8 a statement.

“Program staff is aware and is looking into the application as they do regularly to troubleshoot certain cases. Applicants and prospective applicants are encouraged to go to IndyRent.org for Frequently Asked Questions and program contact information.”

Indiana rental assistance programs