Resources and help available for those facing eviction in central Indiana

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Thousands of Hoosier families face the threat of being kicked out of their homes.

A new wave of evictions is hitting Indiana courts, but there is hope and help.

Central Indiana’s Fair Housing Center says there was an eviction crisis before the pandemic, and the pandemic made it worse.

Pastor Fred Dorsey says some people in his congregation at True Vine Missionary Baptist Church face eviction.

“Just had a meeting with a couple of them on yesterday. They’re at a point where they really don’t know how to feel or what’s the next step. I think this gives them an open door, a solution of something that can be resolved,” Dorsey said.

And they are not alone. In late August, the United States Supreme Court allowed evictions to resume nationwide.

“We’ve seen a substantial spike in eviction filings across the state of Indiana and here in Indianapolis,” Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana Executive Director Amy Nelson said. “In fact, the week after the Supreme Court overruled the eviction moratorium, we saw-pre-COVID filing eviction numbers, which is significant because Indiana and the city of Indianapolis were already extremely high-evicting cities and states.”

Tuesday, the Helping Others Prosper Economically (HOPE) Team held a community meeting at the church with a goal of telling people facing eviction there is help, options and resources.

“It’s nothing else but to share the information, to help someone,” Kim Boyd, the HOPE Team’s founder and president, said. “Where they can go, who they can call, where they can tap in to. And just, we all kind of be our brother’s keeper.”

Nelson says resources are available if you can show COVID- related impact.

“There are a lot of rental assistance funds available. Those are not tied to the eviction moratorium. People can be requesting those funds through their city or state government in order to get access to it. We encourage anybody who fears eviction or who gets served with an eviction notice, that they contact Indiana legal services or another legal service agency to get represented,” Nelson said.

Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett said Tuesday the city has a robust program that is trying to keep people from being evicted. Hogsett added that the city spent tens of millions of dollars over the last year in that anti-eviction program, which just received $91 million from the state.

“We have resources. They just need to reach out and make sure that they are provide the requisite legal council and assistance that they need in order to address their landlord concerns. In many cases, the landlord may have a legitimate concern. But in most cases, the landlord has adequate resources. The tenant unfortunately doesn’t, and we’re trying to even the scales,” Hogsett said.

Resources

• If you need help with rental assistance or you’re facing eviction, dial 211 to get connected to some services or call the Fair Housing of Central Indiana at 317-644-0673.
• Apply for emergency rental assistance or call 317-912-1260
• Indiana Legal Services can be reached at 844-243-8570
• More information can be found here in English and here in Spanish