Last month was the three-year anniversary of when I was evacuated from my condo on Talbert Street in Anacostia. Now, I am in my eighth hotel stay (and almost $30,000 in credit card debt) after overstaying my welcome at family and friends’ homes from Brandywine, Maryland, to Atlanta, Georgia.
I was a District homeowner for almost five years and wouldn’t you know my own tax dollars led to my homelessness. Here’s how I got here.
Pathways to Middle Class
I bought a condo in Southeast, D.C. in the summer of 2017. I received down payment assistance by way of DC’s Home Purchasing Assistance Program (HPAP) and felt incredibly grateful for the opportunity to own a three bedroom, two and a half bathroom home with a semi-private rooftop, plus private parking.
What was unique about these condos was that they were financed by D.C.’s Housing Protection Trust Fund (HPTF) which meant two things. First, this meant: the developer of this new building was brought in by Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED), and second: one must be HPAP-approved in order to close on a unit.
By Christmas 2017, some neighbors met to discuss issues because one unit had already been dealing with displacement. The unit was a load-bearing, corner unit and unfortunately, the family was displaced to a hotel for months while the developer was to remedy issues.
Because we did not meet the 75% condo occupancy needed to establish a Homeowners’ Association (HOA), the issues we experienced in and around our units went to the developer until summer 2019, when the HOA was officially formed.
Some of our concerns were issues with windows, doors, cracks on the facade, sewage and plumbing issues for B units on lower levels. By summer 2019, neighbors and the HOA worked to secure a structural claim with the D.C. government, and we were eventually successful in receiving funds in 2021. By August 2021, however, many of us were required to evacuate due to safety concerns with soil and retaining walls.
The Talbert Street Task Force
During evacuation, the Talbert Street Task Force was formed and included D.C.‘s Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) and Department of Human Services (DHS), agencies that were to provide temporary rental assistance support while also working with Talbert Street condo owners in finding a permanent solution.
DHS provided rental support to condo owners for two years, offering extensions totaling three years and three months, on behalf of displaced condo owners. I received rental support for a total of two years in the amount of $69,825.60.
Temporary Rental Support
From fall 2021 through fall 2023, I received some rental support from DHS.
Although I was (and continue to be) eligible for a nine-month and six-month extension of this support, at this time I have not received any of the benefit.
Homelessness
In May 2024, I would go on to sign a lease on my own. Unfortunately for me, the landlord was not interested in receiving rent from DHS on my behalf.
I would then go on to pay rent out-of-pocket with no option for reimbursement, though I eventually learned it is unlawful and seen as income-source discrimination to deny a payment arrangement on behalf of a tenant. I did this for six months until issues with mice and mold/mildew were so bad that I could no longer live there. In fact, I am just getting over a skin rash that continues to grow and a cough.
The good news? By September 2024, successfully advocated for the dischargement of (FHFA) loans for myself and neighbors (although advocacy continues for those whose loans are not with Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac).
The bad news: I was laid off from a tech job while also having to step away from my first year of law at the University of District of Columbia David Clark School of Law twice due to housing instability. While I am also a D.C. small business owner and have reliably found work as an independent contractor since 2019, the destabilized housing has meant l could not show up to perform for work. For instance, I don’t have a mailing address to share for new business.
My home on Talbert Street represented a refuge during the holidays for myself, my sister, and chosen family. I often hosted for the holidays and because there was an extra room (or two, as eventually my sister would go on to purchase her own property) would have my local chosen family over for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s. I have since been the one seeking refuge at others’ homes during this time.
I followed all the rules, yet now, full swing into the holidays, I’m rigging my breakfast by way of 7-Eleven and Panera Bread runs wishing instead that I could return to the luxury of making myself a meal in the privacy of my own kitchen. I have to be mindful of identity theft and where to receive packages because I’ve had to change my address so frequently in a short-span of time. Here I am, a District resident, blatantly feeling like I don’t belong in any community and missing my old neighborhood.
