ORLANDO, Fla. – A mother and her children faced eviction from their affordable housing unit in Orlando last month despite overpaying her rent by more than $1,000.
Kozette King and her family moved into Parramore Oaks soon after it opened in 2019.
“It was affordable housing,” she said. “It was something that I could afford.”
Because Parramore Oaks provides affordable housing, King’s rent was based on how much money she made.
Her starting rent for her three-bedroom apartment in 2019 was $875.
It steadily rose over the next five years to $975 in 2020 and $1,028 in 2023.
Her latest proposed increase would have put her monthly rent at $1,226 per month even though she said her income decreased during that time.
King’s Protest
News 6 first met King on Oct. 26, 2023, when she took her frustrations to city leaders.
She and a small group interrupted a news conference where Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer announced a new addition to Parramore Oaks.
“I protested because of affordable housing,” she said. “My whole protest was about affordable housing and gentrification that are coming to our community. As we continue to live here, they keep going up on our rents, so they make it unaffordable for us to live here – intentionally forcing us out.”
See News 6′s coverage of King’s protest
That same week, Parramore Oaks denied her lease renewal, and her rent increased to $1,626 on a month-to-month basis.
Even though she continued to pay her rent, she was eventually served with eviction papers.
“This is outrageous,” she said. “If you can make $16 an hour, and your rent is $2,000 – the math ain’t mathing.”
King’s Eviction Fight
King said she was so certain that her eviction was wrong that she took her fight to court.
“We are here today with regards to the motion to determine rent that was filed in this matter,” said Orange County Judge Eric DuBois
King’s attorney, Ronald Legendre, claimed Parramore Oaks retaliated against King for her protesting.
“During this time, which we feel was during the retaliatory period, they increased her rent,” he told the judge.
An attorney for the apartment complex did not argue during the hearing, but later contended the court found no evidence of retaliation.
After hearing from both sides, DuBois ruled.
“The ongoing rent is $1,079 because I have no documentation to support anything else,” he said.
He found King had overpaid her rent by more than $1,000, and she will be able to stay in her apartment for now.
“She’s been active in the community, and I think they’ve been trying to get rid of her for some time, and they look at this as an excuse,” Legendre told News 6 after the court hearing.
Court testimony indicated King was asked to submit documentation to recertify her for affordable housing, but the judge found the apartment complex did not submit any proof that it happened.
As a result, King may have missed her opportunity to continue paying a discounted rent, and her rent could go up to the market rate.
“So, what’s going to happen is that I will be another person that is displaced – homeless,” she told News 6. “I would love to continue to stay there, but would they let me continue to stay there? No. The thing is to get us out.”