KISSIMMEE, Fla. — All Savitri Houston wants is to live in a safe home, one that won’t further antagonize her already-weak immune system. She says she was born with hidradenitis, a condition that clogs her sweat glands, creating cysts and causing her excruciating pain. 

“I don’t move unless I have to,” Houston said.

Now, after living with her son for about 10 years at the same Kissimmee home, she does have to move – because of ongoing damage she says her landlord won’t fix, caused by mold and termites.

Houston says the neglect persists despite her complaints about the property’s condition. It recently failed an inspection conducted by Osceola County’s Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program. 

Rotted, chewed-up wood is visible behind the bathroom wall of this Kissimmee rental unit in this photo from late 2020. The bathroom's wall has since been replaced. (Courtesy Savitri Houston)

That federally-funded rental assistance program, also known as Section 8, helps Houston pay for her rental unit. The program’s stretched infamously thin: across the country, years-long waitlists block low-income families, disabled people and seniors from getting the vouchers they desperately need to afford a decent place to live. 

In Osceola County, about 335 people were actively waiting for a voucher as of Sept. 9.

Staff at the local Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) tasked with distributing the vouchers have described the program as a “golden ticket” – once you finally get a voucher, you’ll do anything to keep it. But some renters simply can’t. They may struggle to find a landlord who will participate in the program, or a unit they can afford with their subsidy amount. 

All Houston wants is to keep the voucher that’s kept herself and her 23-year-old son stably housed for the last 10 years. She initially hesitated to speak out publicly about her issues with the Section 8 program: she knows without that “golden ticket,” she could never afford area rent on her fixed income of just about $9,000 a year.

But at this point, Houston says she has no other choice but to share her experience in hopes of it possibly helping others.

“I stuck it out for this many years, and it hasn’t gotten any better,” Houston said.

Mold, termites and doors

The two-bedroom home Houston rents is small and modest. She keeps it clean, or as clean as she says she can, given gaps in the unit’s ceilings and walls that expose it to mold and insects. Houston gave Spectrum News copies of allergen test results that reveal the strong presence of several different types of mold in her system.

“Maybe that’s why I get the migraines or can’t stand the light, why I’m sick to my stomach,” Houston said.

One recent September afternoon, Houston showed Spectrum News how termite droppings seep out through holes in the living room wall. From outside, on that same wall, gaping holes peek through slabs of wood, some of which appear to be rotting. Osceola County cited both issues as violations of federal housing quality standards on the unit’s failed Aug. 5 inspection.

Another issue – one of eight violations cited on that inspection report – is apparent even before entering Houston’s unit. Both doors leading into the house are installed inside out, their hinges exposed to the outside world. 

Houston doesn’t feel safe knowing someone could enter her home by simply removing the hinges. She says she’s complained to both her landlord and Section 8 about the door since day one; her landlord disagrees, saying Section 8 should have told him the door was a problem during the program’s initial inspection of his property a decade ago. 

Before the failed August inspection, Houston says she didn’t get much help from Section 8, either: “They said they can’t do anything, as long as the door is operable,” she said.

When asked whether a door with exposed hinges is considered safe and proper under program guidelines, Osceola County staff cited the county’s administrative Section 8 plan.

“The family is also responsible for deciding the acceptability of the type of door and window locks,” Section 8 Coordinator Vanessa Lopez wrote in an email. She later clarified the doors were listed as a deficiency during the Aug. 5 inspection, and that the county would withhold its portion of the rent if the landlord doesn’t resolve the problem within the given correction period – generally 30 days, for non life-threatening issues.

But Houston says her landlord did receive his September rent, which frustrates her because she feels there’s no incentive for him to fix the property.

“You get your rent every month, but then you don’t want to fix anything,” she said.

At this point, regardless of when the property’s issues get resolved, it’ll be too late for Houston, who’s already learned her lease won’t renew once it expires Oct. 31. Her landlord, Zafar Mian, sent her a notice of non-renewal just two weeks before Section 8’s most recent inspection.

“I need this house empty to repair it,” Mian said, adding that he can get “better tenants from outside Section 8.” Mian rents to another tenant through the program, though, who he says he has a better relationship with than Houston.

Now Houston only has a short time to find a new housing provider, before she’s either kicked out or her voucher expires. Her hidradenitis acts up when she’s anxious, causing her pain and making the search process more difficult. 

“The system is set up to help us, but really, in a sense it has discouraged me,” Houston said.

‘Maybe this’ll help somebody else’

For his part, Mian says the doors that swing outward allow for more space inside the small unit, and are also easier to push open in case of emergency. He says he didn’t know exactly what he was getting into when he agreed to lease out his unit through the Section 8 program, but that he wishes staff cared more about the concerns of owners like him.

“They put all the blame on the owner,” Mian said. “When you give [a unit] to Section 8, everything is perfect … then, something happens and Section 8 complains that we [owners] have the responsibility.”

While Houston’s grateful for the program, she wishes they could have intervened more on her behalf. She feels on her own even now, as she references the list of housing providers Section 8 gave her. All the units on the list are either unavailable or located in dangerous areas, Houston says – a scenario that research suggests is relatively common among Section 8 programs. A Harvard study conducted in the early 2000’s indicates these kinds of lists effectively steer families to a “submarket” of less desirable housing units in less desirable locations. 

On a national level, the Biden Administration has committed to expanding the country’s drastically short affordable housing supply. Right now, no U.S. state has enough affordable housing for its poorest renters. The House Financial Services Committee on Thursday released legislation that would invest $75 billion into the Section 8 program, and prioritize recruitment of new landlords in lower-poverty areas. 

Meanwhile, Houston’s trying to find a two-bedroom unit she can afford in Kissimmee – ideally somewhere near her current spot, as it’s close to all her doctors. Between her payment contribution and Section 8’s, her maximum limit to spend on monthly rent is $1,170.

Although she initially feared speaking up, Houston says she wants to help give a voice to other low-income families like hers – and weigh in on how the Section 8 program might improve.

“Even if I end up homeless, maybe this’ll help somebody else,” she said, fighting back tears.

Molly Duerig is a Report for America corps member who is covering affordable housing for Spectrum News 13. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.