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Is Your Landlord Required to Fix Your A/C?

June 12, 2024

By Emily Blackshire-Giel and Donate James It is no secret that it can get HOT in South Carolina’s summers. But who is responsible for making sure a unit has air conditioning? Under South Carolina law, it depends! There are four essential services that landlords must provide access to renters in SC – heat, running water,…

How a Criminal Record Can Lead to a Lifetime of Housing Issues in South Carolina

January 18, 2024

Written By Emily Blackshire-Giel, EJW Housing Fellow Attorney Edited by Dontae James, EJW Housing Justice Fellow The impact of having a criminal record can permeate into every part of a person’s life. Over the next month, we’ll be exploring the different ways the criminal justice system makes it difficult for individuals to stabilize and return…

How Housing Issues Quickly Become Health Issues: Edith’s Story

August 22, 2023

“I can’t sleep, I can’t eat, I can’t take a bath. I can’t walk around barefoot. They’re all over my clothes and making me sick.” While having a roof over your head often is a signal of stability, for Edith and her family it’s been anything but that. From bugs to lack of repairs to…

What is a 14 Day Letter? (Letter and Sample Included)

August 3, 2023

Tenants who are struggling to get their landlord to make repairs, especially repairs materially affecting the health and safety or physical condition of their property, should send their landlord a letter regarding the landlord’s duty to fix the property (per SC Code Ann. § 27-40-610). This is called a 14 Day Letter. When writing a…

The Impossible Task of Finding Rent on a Budget: Tonia’s Story

June 26, 2023

“They were passing out evictions like ice cream in South Congaree,” says Tonia. Tonia lives in Richland county – at least, she is trying to.   It was just a couple of years ago when she suddenly was forced to move away from her home on Farrow Road. Desperate for a place to go, she…

“I wanted to cry so bad. Now I feel I’m stuck.” – Amara’s Housing Story

May 15, 2023

When it comes to being a tenant, sometimes trying to do everything right is not enough. That’s a lesson that Amara* has learned in the hardest of ways.  Amara is a mother of three children, who also often cares for four of her nieces and nephews, since their mother tragically passed away. For more than…

SC Housing Stories: Helping Residents Facing Eviction | NAACP Housing Navigator Program

February 7, 2023

Welcome to another installment of our South Carolina Housing Stories Project!  Our Housing Justice Organizer, Sloan Wilson (she/her), sat down with Ashley Blas (she/her) and Glynnis Hagins (she/her) to learn more about the NAACP’s Housing Navigator Program in Columbia, SC. This program connects folks in Richland County with legal and financial help with those facing…

SC Housing Stories: Providing the Foundation For a Future | Homeless No More

July 29, 2022

Welcome to the second feature in our South Carolina Housing Stories project! In this series, we will be talking with advocates, community members, and more about housing issues in South Carolina and discuss the need for housing investments in our state. We spoke with Lila Anna Sauls, the President and CEO of Homeless No More…

SC Housing Stories: How Small Changes Can Make Big Differences | The Rainy Day Fund

May 9, 2022

Welcome to the first feature in our South Carolina Housing Stories project! In this series, we will be talking with advocates, community members, and more about housing issues in South Carolina and discuss the need for housing investments in our state. For our first story, we sat down with Kieley Sutton, a public defender at…

Housing Assistance Resources – Eviction Moratorium Ended

August 27, 2021

SC Housing Assistance Resources – Eviction Moratorium Ended On August 26, the Supreme Court ruled in a 6-3 vote to end the Eviction Moratorium that was originally set to end on October 3rd. This means that all protections from the moratorium have been eliminated. “We are disappointed that the stay has been lifted and implore…