Many residents of a development southwest of Durango that provides housing to low-income and special-needs clients were left confused and stressed last week after they received demands for payment that threatened eviction.
A week later, some Piñon Terrace residents say they have not heard from their property manager, and cannot figure out why they received the notices in the first place.
Resident Sarah Erickson said the normal property manager recently took parental leave and turned duties over to someone new at Mercy Housing, a national nonprofit that owns and operates Piñon Terrace.
The development sits southeast of Durango next to Mercy Hospital. The hospital donated the land for the complex through a partnership between Catholic Health Initiatives and Mercy Housing, but the two organizations have no other direct ties.
Erickson said the new property manager told her that 52 of the 66 units received demands for payment.
The notice that Erickson received demanded $1,025 – less than her monthly rent – in “past due rent/late fees … owed to the landlord from May 1, 2024 to May 31, 2024.”
A receipt reviewed by The Durango Herald shows that Erickson’s rent check was cashed May 6 – four days before she received the letter demanding payment.
Both residents who receive housing vouchers – meaning payment for their unit comes from the Colorado Division of Housing – and those who pay rent themselves received notices. Of the 66 units, rent for 29 of them are covered in-part or in-full by housing assistance vouchers administered by the Division of Housing.
Two tenants hypothesized that perhaps the state’s payment was late this month and that prompted the notices.
However, a spokeswoman for the Division of Housing confirmed the division sent a direct deposit of $35,149 to Mercy Housing on April 29.
A spokeswoman for Mercy Housing provided few details about the situation and said the nonprofit is committed to providing affordable housing.
“It is our policy to send a demand letter for payment on the tenth of each month if the resident has not paid their portion of rent,” Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications Kate Peterson said in an email to The Durango Herald. “We are looking into this issue with our staff to address the concerns of the residents.”
Residents say the property manager has not communicated with them since dropping off the notices, and the lack of communication is upping the level of anxiety.
One resident, who requested anonymity for fear of retribution, said she has left multiple messages and received no response.
“I do not know what to do and I’m kind of freaking out right now,” she said Monday.
Erickson said she received a notice in May 2023 that her rent would go up by $52 per month. However, the notice said the increase would take effect in the middle of her yearly lease term, in violation of her contract with Mercy Housing. It also named a total monthly rent that was less than the rate she was paying at the time.
When she emailed the manager’s office, Erickson said she never received a response. She received no further communication about her rent until the demand for payment letter showed up on her door.
“Many residents here are elderly, victims of abuse, and physically or mentally disabled,” Erickson wrote in an email. “I’m concerned for the stress this is causing. I’m also worried that some residents may not know how to fight for themselves or that they even need to and just pay the money, not that most can afford it.”
rschafir@durangoherald.com
