Dasha Kelly is two months behind on her rent and could be kicked out of her apartment at any time. (CNN)
By Kimberly Berryman and Nick Watt, CNN
(CNN) – When CNN knocked on her door, Dasha Kelly panicked, thinking that the eviction she was afraid of was finally imminent.
“You honestly scared me this morning when you knocked,” she said.
Kelly and her three daughters – Sharron, 8; Kia, 6; and Imani, 5 – live on borrowed time, two months behind their rent in their two-bedroom apartment in Las Vegas. The eviction notice she received is kept in a drawer in the kitchen; out of sight, but in the head.
“I’m not going to lie because I really think they’re coming any minute.”
The state eviction moratorium, which helped keep tenants in their homes during the pandemic, expired at midnight Saturday, paving the way for landlords to evict tenants whose rent was overdue. States are active to avert mass displacement, but not all can be reached or helped in time.
Kelly lost her job as a card dealer when Covid-19 forced the famous Las Vegas casinos to close their doors last year. She has had a few temporary jobs since then, but not enough to keep up with the rent. Now the 32-year-old desperately wants to stay in her house and has pawned most of her furniture for cash.
The apartment is empty except for a small sofa in the living room and a TV. Kelly sleeps on the floor in the larger bedroom, while her daughters share a smaller room with just a few doll boxes neatly stacked in the corner. They play board games together, giggle on the wide carpet without realizing that they might soon be evicted.
“There are days when I don’t even want to roll out the bed (or) the floor, you know what I mean?” She said. “How do you explain this to your children?”
She paused. “I have no words. I think I’ll just break down and hug her I guess and let her know that everything will be fine and we’ll find out I think. “
More than 11 million Americans are behind on their rent, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Congress approved $ 46 billion to help, but very little of that money was paid out. In Nevada, a new law stipulates that tenants who have applied for the Cares Housing Assistance Program (CHAP) cannot be evicted while their case is being processed. However, the bureaucratic process can be complicated and not every landlord or tenant keeps up with the ever-changing rules.
Nevada has extended its evacuation protection to those who are in the process of applying for rental assistance. The state has also passed a law to seal evacuation records from the pandemic.
“I applied for a CHAP back in June and thought they’d be in touch with you soon, but it looks like it’s a process,” said Kelly. “I don’t know if you can help me in time.”
Kelly said she once made up to $ 5,600 a night in tips while working at a card table near the Las Vegas Strip. Now she relies on grocery stamps, meager unemployment, and $ 100 payments to sell her blood plasma as often as possible.
“I’ve always worked. I’ve been working since I was 16, ”she said. “To me, it’s just crazy that something can take your job away without you doing anything wrong. I mean, you actually do what you’re supposed to … get good reviews, show up for work. Then comes a virus and then ‘Oh sorry, you don’t have a job’ … and you haven’t done anything. “
Without money for childcare or car payments, the chances of returning to work are slim. Kelly said she hoped a friend could help but admitted that she doesn’t have many in this town.
“I really don’t have a lot of friends out here, but only the colleagues I have met … I hope they can help because my parents are in another state and it’s kind of a difficult time.”
Kelly recently opened a GoFundMe account in desperation with the aim of raising $ 2,000.
By Tuesday morning, it had raised more than $ 78,000 through more than 1,000 donations.
The CNN Wire
™ & © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia company. All rights reserved.
