Help Merikay Noah Pay Rent and Stay Housed

Help Merikay Noah Pay Rent ASAP

I put off asking for help until all other options were exhausted. I wouldn’t ask if I had any other way.

How I got here:

Most of this part is disaster-related. The best-laid plans and backup plans sometimes don’t survive Mother Nature. After ending up in the ER in mid-September, I sold my car the day before my birthday to ensure I had money to pay rent while recovering and finding work.

Then Hell-ene hit Asheville overnight on my birthday and into the next day. Our rent was supposed to be tolled until we had potable water in our units, which happened well over 2 months later. Our rent was only tolled for two weeks. We protested but nothing was done. Because our internet and WiFi only had sporadic usage at 5-10 minutes at a time until December, I lost valuable job-hunting time.

Did I look at moving? Yes. Could I move somewhere else when I crunched the numbers and tried to find ways to move? No.

Current Situation:

My six months of rental help from my car loan ended in mid-March. I’ve looked for work and freelance work. I had a few irons in the fire so I was hopeful, but I was looking too high up the job food chain for someone “my age.” So, I’ve switched gears to jobs I'm overqualified for but companies will hire “old” people to do. I’m getting more interest. Nothing is happening fast enough though.

What I Need Immediately:

My goal = $3,900. That’s the bare minimum to pay my rent for the rest of April and May.

The first asap need is $1,300 to finish paying my April rent.

I was barely able to pay the first half of my April rent through Flex. That $1,300 is an immediate need. It takes over a week for GoFundMe to process payments and get them into my bank account. I waited this long to reach out because I thought I had an alternative. Nope.

My second need = $2,600 for my May rent.

Even if I get a job during April, I won’t get paid in time to cover my May rent, which is $2.600. The first rent payment of $1.300 is due on May 1st and the 2nd payment of $1,300 is due by mid-May.

Total rent for both months = $3,900. That doesn’t include money for meds, food, or utilities – just rent.

So, let’s talk about the elephant in the room. I know I’m asking this when things are screwed up in this country. That makes it a much harder ask. I believe we’ll dig our way out of this mess and I believe I will find work. I know my mess is not your mess. I’m still asking for your help though because, quite frankly, I am out of options.

If I could find any other way to get this done without asking, I would not be writing this.

Thank you in advance for reading this and for anything you can do to help me. And please share this for reach. Thank you!