April 2025 - Survivors and Fair Housing
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Welcome Note
As fair housing month comes to an end, it's more important than ever to spotlight protections that too often go unnoticed—especially for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. Did you know that under the Fair Housing Act, you may have legal protections if you've faced housing discrimination because of your experience as a survivor? Whether it's being denied a lease, evicted due to a partner’s violence, or harassed by a landlord, these are not just unfair—they could be illegal.
Survivors and Fair Housing
Did You Know…
With 1 in 4 women experiencing domestic violence in their lifetime, research shows that women are 5x more likely than men to be survivors of domestic violence and abuse, highlighting a significant gender disparity in how this violence is experienced.
Intimate partner violence (IPV) and housing instability are deeply intertwined—many survivors are subjected to financial abuse, where abusers control income, sabotage employment, or restrict access to money as a means of isolation and control.
Between 21% and 60% of IPV survivors report having lost their jobs due to the abuse, whether from absenteeism, workplace disruptions, or being forced to leave by the abuser. This economic fallout can make finding or maintaining housing incredibly difficult.
So What Does It All Mean?
Survivors of domestic violence are often disproportionately affected by 'nuisance-free' or 'zero-tolerance crime' ordinances, which may penalize tenants for repeated calls to law enforcement—even when those calls are made for their own protection.
Evictions that result from domestic violence can have a devastating and long-lasting impact on survivors, especially those who are trying to leave an unsafe situation in order to protect themselves.
Another aspect of an abuser’s financial control is damaged credit history, which becomes yet another obstacle, making it difficult—or even impossible—for survivors to secure housing, loans, or financial independence when trying to rebuild their lives.
What Can We Do?
There are protections for survivors, under the Violence Against Women Act, aimed to prevent the discrimination of survivors in housing. If you or someone you know needs help, call us at the Fair Housing project or the Survivor Advocacy project
Sometimes the Fair Housing Act may also protect domestic violence survivors from discrimination in housing on the basis of sex based discrimination, therefore protections exist for women who do not live in subsidized housing as well!
These protections may result in bifurcating a lease without penalty, transferring a voucher to a different unit, or removing the abuser from the lease altogether.
Community Outreach
Upcoming Outreach Events
What We’ve Been Up To
Micanopy Food Drive
To start off the month, Lola Arroyo-Mateo and Marissa Latimer, passed out housing justice flyers during the Willie Mae Stokes Center’s weekly food drive. It was a great time to connect rural residents in Alachua County with our free housing legal services!
Betty Griffin 5K Run for Peace
On the first Saturday of Fair Housing Month, project manager Joe Cordova and Flagler College intern Hannah Gerber attended the Betty Griffin Center for Domestic Violence 5K Run for Peace. In addition to hosting a table and providing information and resources regarding Fair Housing and the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) protections, Joe participated in the 5k run, joining in the fun! We look forward to future opportunities for partnership!
UF ESA Research Lab Presentation
Earlier this month, Lola and Marissa presented Fair Housing and Tenant’s Rights information to a research lab at the University of Florida that is currently studying tenants with emotional support animals. We are happy to share information about the Fair Housing Act and Tenant Rights to Dr. Applebaum and her team while they study pet inclusive housing in Alachua county. We are proud of the connection and look forward to potential future collaborations!
AAGO Presentation in Maitland
In a joint effort with our two Housing Justice teams, Pia, Lola, and Marissa tabled during Gainesville Community Ministries’ drive-through food distribution. We provided flyers to all the participants and shared information on our free legal services. Thank you GCM for having us, we deeply appreciate community partners like you who help strengthen and enrich our community.
Majestic Oaks Food Distribution
Our Housing Justice projects have been conducting outreach in the heart of Alachua County, ensuring that all patrons get access to our free legal services. Thank you to Bread of the Mighty for allowing us to table during their food distribution site!
SWAG Tabling
Huge thank you to our partners at the SWAG Family Resource Center for allowing us to table and share information about both of our Housing projects! It is always wonderful to connect with resources directly within the community and have partners that can refer patrons to our services.
Learn to Read of St. John’s County
Since February, our project manager Joe Cordova and Flagler College intern Hannah Gerber have been providing weekly Know Your Rights presentations to adult English language learners, covering such legal topics as housing, civil rights, discrimination, and more. Thank you Learn to Read, and thank you Hannah for a terrific semester!!
Presentation at the Alachua County Fire Rescue
Thanks to our connection to the social services team at the Alachua County Fire Rescue (ACFR), both Fair Housing and Eviction Prevention presented on tenant rights and protections to the social workers at ACFR. Great to know of the amazing mental and substance abuse health services that are offered to Alachua County residents!
CHEI/ESOL Presentation
It was such a pleasure presenting in Spanish and English on Fair Housing and Tenant Rights to the adult ESOL class at Westwood Middle School. Our Housing Justice Projects shared valuable information and knowledge to the participants navigating their own housing situations. Big thanks to Cinthya and the Community Health Equity Institute for inviting us to present!
Victim Service Center Presentation
In an effort to highlight both Fair Housing Month and Sexual Assault Awareness Month, members of the Fair Housing team, Lola and Pablo, were joined by Survivor Advocacy Director, Erika Recek to present at Victim Service Center of Central Florida. We are grateful for the opportunity to educate and equip advocates with the knowledge about survivors’ rights. Thank you to the VSC for hosting and to the advocates for being engaged and willing to learn.
New Home Buyers Class
We would like to thank the Neighborhood Housing and Development Corporation for allowing us to present at yet another New Home Buyer class. We appreciate the opportunity to equip new home buyers with knowledge about their rights under the Fair Housing Act.
Branford Library Presentation
In an effort to reach more rural communities, our Fair Housing Outreach Coordinator, Lola Arroyo-Mateo, gave a Fair Housing Basics presentation at the Branford Public Library. Patrons and staff were engaged and very active participants, asking questions and taking notes. Thank you to the Branford Library for hosting us and helping promote this event!
Majestic Oaks Community Event
Thanks to our community partners our Eviction Prevention team was able to support the Majestic Oaks Apartments during their family Easter event. It was a great time connecting tenants to our legal services. We look forward to our continued partnership in the community!
Another Way Presentation
In a joint effort, the Fair Housing and Survivor Advocacy projects presented to survivors, staff, and advocates at Another Way. Our fair housing outreach coordinator was joined by Kate Ramey, a survivor advocacy attorney, as they spoke about the Fair Housing Act and the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the different protections survivors have under both. We are grateful to Another Way for welcoming us and for the amazing work that they all do!
Tavares Library Presentation
It’s always great when members of the Fair Housing Team get to reunite for events! We would like to thank the Tavares Library for kindly hosting us for a Fair Housing Basics and Know Your Rights presentation. We were joined by our Fair Housing attorneys, Joseph Cordova and Pablo Hereter, and Survivor Advocacy Director, Erika Recek.
Housing Resource Fair in Gainesville
It was a great experience sharing information on our Housing Justice Projects during Alachua County’s housing resource fair. We were joined by Pia Molina, our Fair Housing testing coordinator, and Denise Bezick and Brooke Elizar-Macke, both of our Eviction Prevention attorneys. It was a great way to end off Fair Housing Month!
Re-Entry Partnership Conference
The Housing Justice projects had the amazing opportunity to present and share information during the two-day conference to help community members facing obstacles to employment gain the skills and resources needed to navigate their housing situations. Thank you Library Partnership for including us in the programming!
CRT Presentation
Both Housing Justice projects had the chance to present Tenant and Fair Housing rights to the Co-Responder Teams (CRT) with Gainesville Police Department. Training staff is one great way to ensure patrons are equipped with service works that know how and who to refer them to for all of their legal housing needs.
Eviction Prevention in Alachua County:
Alachua County Eviction Prevention Legal Clinic - If you have a housing or legal question that you would like to consult an attorney about, please join us on May 20th at Tower Road Library Branch from 12pm-3pm, located on 3020 SW 75th St, Gainesville, FL 32608. You can speak to an attorney for FREE, if you have any questions or concerns, stop by!
Know Your Rights Workshops - The Alachua County Eviction Prevention team is hosting FREE monthly legal clinics “Know Your Rights As A Renter” at public locations throughout the county. Join the Eviction Prevention team this month on May 5th at SWAG Family Resource Center from 9am-12pm, located on 807 SW 64th Terrace, Gainesville, FL 32607. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear advice and ask questions of experienced housing attorneys.
Alachua County Eviction Prevention Helpline - CALL: 888-780-0443
This helpline aimed at serving Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) recipients and other members of the Alachua community is up and running! Helpline operators are accepting phone calls regarding housing, landlord-tenant issues, child support, or any other legal issue faced by low-income Alachua County renters. Callers will be connected with an attorney who can provide legal assistance over the phone and in some cases, direct legal representation. EMAIL TO JOIN MAILING LIST FOR UPCOMING FREE LEGAL CLINIC!
The federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) protects you from discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status. This applies to renting, buying, mortgages, appraisals, insurance, and looking for a place to live.
IF YOU THINK YOU’VE BEEN THE VICTIM OF HOUSING DISCRIMINATION, PLEASE CONTACT US AT:
407-801- 4224 (English)
850-680-1729 (Spanish)
fairhousing@floridalegal.org
www.floridalegal.org/fairhousing
IF YOU ARE AN ALACHUA COUNTY RESIDENT FACING BARRIERS TO HOUSING OR AN EVICTION, PLEASE CALL AND FOLLOW THE PROMPTS TO REACH A LIVE ALACHUA COUNTY OPERATOR:
888-780-0443 (English and Spanish)
www.floridalegal.org/evictionprevention
The work that provided the basis for this publication was supported by funding under a grant with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The author and publisher are solely responsible for the accuracy of the statements and interpretations contained in this publication. Such interpretations do not necessarily reflect the views of the Federal Government.