Rent relief money available for people in need

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — In Davidson County, there’s rent relief money available for tenants and landlords through the Nashville Conflict Resolution Center.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has halted evictions due to the inability to pay to slow the spread of COVID-19. Meanwhile, the financial burden is falling on landlords who forecast foreclosures when tenants can't pay rent.

For Lisa Myrick, times have been tough during the pandemic. She's been taking care of her daughter and grandchildren after her son-in-law died.

"We just buried him, that’s hard to talk about, and then I came back to work after that, and not even a week after he passed, and we buried him, and then my job released me."

Without a job, Lisa is unable to pay rent. Through Metro's CARES Act relief money that was distributed by the Nashville Conflict Resolution Center, she was able to get 3 months of rent paid on her behalf.

Nonprofit executive director Sara Figal said they've been slammed distributing checks to landlords.

"It’s like democracy functioning, it’s great!" Figal said. "We’ve given out over $302,000 and we haven’t even hit November 1st." They still have money available too.

Landlord Tiffany Brantley said at one point she was panicking about being stuck with multiple mortgages.

"You are screwed. A lot of the small landlords, whether you own one property, or you own 20, you don’t have insurance, you have a mortgage. So whenever they can’t pay, you have to figure out how to pay, and it’s very difficult because now you’re robbing Peter to pay Paul."

Fortunately, some of her tenants were eligible for rent relief. "I've received 5 checks from NCRC which I’m very appreciative of,” Brantley said.

The extra money helps her pay for therapy for her autistic son.

Meanwhile, Lisa is no longer worried about being evicted due to the rent assistance program. "It was like I felt 100% better. I felt like that monkey was off my back. I literally just felt like I could breathe, I could work on other things I need to pay now and focus on getting a new job," Myrick said.

You can request rent relief here. People in need of the grant money must show how they've been negatively impacted by the pandemic. The deadline to get this batch of rent relief checks to tenants has been extended to December 18.

While the Nashville Conflict Resolution Center has a plethora of money to give out, the non-profit has actually taken a funding hit. They're asking for donations so they can continue this type of work. You can send them money here.