Patricia Ford has been packing up the house she fell in love with and has rented since December 2019.
At 71, Ford, who lives on a fixed income, doesn’t know where she will go next Tuesday – Aug. 31 — the deadline to get out of the two-bedroom Coquina Key home that was sold from under her. Friday, the Realtor called to see whether she’ll be out by then.
Yes. Where to, is the real question.
Ford, who lives with a son, said most two-bedroom apartments she’s inquired about rent for $1,300 to $1,400 a month, which she can’t afford. She pays $1,000 a month now. She’s on a waiting list for senior housing, but was told the wait will be six months to a year.
She’s called motels – the decent ones — asking for monthly rates. “They’re over $1,200 a month, so you can’t win for losing,” she said.
Ford says she is working with a credit repair company because she had too many credit cards. But, she said, she’s never missed a month paying her rent.
She can move in with family, but wants her independence. Besides, she said, “All of their houses are full, so I don’t want to inconvenience anybody.”
Ford’s story tells of Pinellas County’s affordable housing crisis.
The Rev. Lee Hall-Perkins, senior pastor at Mt. Zion United Methodist Church in Clearwater, is co-chair of the affordable housing committee for FAST (Faith and Action for Strength Together), an interfaith and multi-racial group of more than 40 Pinellas congregations that works to solve community issues such as education and housing.
“We are most concerned about the dollars that are already designated for affordable housing, and when we say affordable housing, we are talking about families of four making $56,000 or less a year, and that is 80 percent of the AMI (area median income) or less,” he said.
“What the city of St. Petersburg and also our county is doing is trying to expand what affordable housing is to families who make up to 120 percent of the AMI, which is a little over $80,000. We are concerned about those families who need it the most and that’s the group that is in the 80 percent AMI and below.”
