Hi, my name is Randi, and I need help getting me and my 2 cats out of our unsafe living condition.

My apartment has not been short of issues almost immediately upon moving in. Roaches surfacing on my 2nd day in the unit, radiators blowing and leaking pools of water, windows shattering from not being able to stay open without random props (something nobody informed me of upon moving in) and taking literal YEARS to get my landlord to replace, exposed nails coming up from shoddy wood flooring requiring me to have to get a tetanus shot, going DAYS without working heat this winter on days where temperatures got as low as 1 degree, the list goes on.

All of that together did not compare to waking up on 2/26/25 to what sounded like rain outside but what was actually rain occurring INSIDE of my apartment. The radiator in my dining room was pouring out water, water was pouring out of a seam in the wall above my bathroom door, paint bubbling and filling with water on my bathroom walls, water emerging from the molding of the bottom of the bathroom wall, and then eventually BLACK water spraying out of the light fixture in the center of my dining/living room and moving on to come out of various random holes in the ceiling as well, seemingly spreading like wildfire.

It took over an hour and several trips to my leasing office to demand someone come help before anybody even showed up! The 2 trash cans I had were rapidly being filled to the brim. I can’t even remember how many times I had to dump them out on account of how quickly they were filling up.

Maintenance told me the interior of my wall and ceilings in the affected areas are going to be destroyed and without a doubt will develop black mold. The flooring has already become severely warped in the affected areas from the water damage. The only resolution they presented me with so far is 1 small dehumidifier. They have not communicated with me further and seemingly disappeared after the incident as I waited outside of their office for an hour with nobody showing up.

This all occurred because the UNCONNECTED radiator (a common issue in these apartments. I’ve had 2 separate ones leak excessive amounts of water while waiting, again, literal YEARS for them to send someone to connect them) in the unit above me burst with no tenant to report the issue. Water was pooling at a rapid rate and clearly had nowhere to go but down. I was 1 of only 3 units affected.

Golden Managment in Detroit does not care about their tenants. I shouldn’t have to chase them down to fix any little or large issue that occurs while I rent under them. They seldom answer the phone or are available in office. And the maintenance request form on their website has been down for over a year. They never solve any actual issues and just throw on a band-aid. Had they actually taken the time to connect any and all unconnected radiators in the complex, this probably could have been avoided, and I probably wouldn’t be needing to seek help from my community to get me out of this abhorrent living situation.

At this point in time I only have $200 to my name and am struggling to find employment outside of doing Shipt to stay afloat. I am asking for $3,000 to help me get into a new place. This will cover all the move in necessities aka security deposit, first month’s rent, application fees, pet fees, and a u-haul rental assist in my move.

Anything that gets me close to my goal is appreciated. It does not come without shame to have to ask for financial assistance but I need safe and livable conditions for both me and my animals ASAP. It’s been 3 years of absolute hell.