Wake County woman says housing authority failed to pay thousands in rent for over a year
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- A Wake County renter says she feared eviction after learning the Wake County Housing Authority (WCHA) had not paid its portion of her rent for more than a year, despite her paying her share every month.
The woman, who asked ABC11 not to identify her, contacted ABC11Troubleshooter Diane Wilson after receiving notices from her apartment complex showing more than $8,300 in unpaid rent. She said to Wilson, "I was like, what in the world is going on here? I know I'm paying my rent. What is the issue?"
According to documents the renter shared with ABC11, WCHA had not paid its portion of her Housing Choice Voucher rent since February 2025. The renter added, "I was losing my mind, actually, because I was like, oh my God, they're sending me a notice. What's next? Eviction." The renter says she repeatedly called and emailed her WCHA caseworker but received no resolution. After receiving another notice from her apartment complex that she now owed more than $10,000 in unpaid rent, she reached out to ABC11. She said to Wilson, "I've seen the stories you did, and I thought maybe you can help me."
This isn't the first time Troubleshooter Diane Wilson has investigated rent payment issues involving the Wake County Housing Authority. Last summer, ABC11 heard from both landlords and renters who said WCHA had failed to make rent payments.
At the time, the agency acknowledged owing approximately $1.9 million in back rent to landlords. One landlord, Damon Evans, told Wilson, "I just want my money. I'm providing a safe, affordable house for a tenant that's a wonderful tenant and I just want to be paid."
Following ABC11's reporting, several landlords received overdue payments, and WCHA said it had reduced the amount of unpaid rent by more than $1 million. At the time, WCHA blamed the problems on employee turnover, issues involving housing vouchers transferred from other housing authorities, and cases where required HUD documentation and annual recertifications had not been submitted.
Regarding the most recent case Wilson heard about, after Wilson contacted WCHA's executive director, the renter said she was able to schedule an in-person meeting with the agency. The renter said to Wilson, "If you hadn't stepped in, they were going to continue to ignore me."
She says WCHA employees apologized during the meeting.
"They were saying that this is unfortunate, and they're here to help me," she added.
WCHA told Wilson the payment issue stemmed from the housing authority where the renter's voucher originally originated, saying that the agency had not made payments since September 2024. However, when Wilson contacted that agecy, officials gave a different explanation.
They said they did not reimburse WCHA because they did not receive the billing until nearly a year later. The executive director there said HUD rules require billing to be submitted within 90 days of the expiration of the initial voucher. When asked about the delay, WCHA said the tenant would remain housed, and her landlord would be paid. Although it took longer than initially promised, WCHA says it has now paid its portion of the renter's back rent in full.
Wilson asked WCHA how much total back rent the agency still owes. The executive director did not answer that question.
Board chair responds
Instead, the Chair of the Board of Commissioners for the Housing Authority of the County of Wake, Yolanda Taylor, provided the following statement:
"As Chair of the Board of Commissioners for the Housing Authority of the County of Wake, I want people to know that we understand how serious this situation is. Behind every delayed housing assistance payment is a landlord waiting to be paid and, more importantly, a tenant or family worried about whether they will remain stably housed through no fault of their own.
I also think it is important for the public to understand that the current Board of Commissioners is a fairly new board. Most of us have served less than a year, and I myself only recently reached my one-year mark a few months ago. These issues did not begin with this board, nor did they begin this year or last year. Many of the financial challenges facing this agency date back years, even prior to 2020. Most of it is due to lack of adequate staffing and some technology issues.
What I do believe is that the Wake County Board of Commissioners intentionally appointed a strong and talented board to help stabilize this agency and strengthen oversight. Our board includes individuals with housing authority operational experience, compliance backgrounds, financial and banking expertise, asset management experience, community organizing leadership through OneWake, and fair housing experience, including service on Raleigh's Fair Housing Hearing Board. As for me, before private practice, I worked at Legal Aid of North Carolina for 13 years and managed one of its offices for nearly eight years, so I understand both the legal and human side of housing instability.
One issue that has contributed to the backlog becoming systemic is the tremendous growth happening in Wake County and across North Carolina. Just as people with means are moving here from across the country, so are low-wealth families with housing vouchers. Our staff reported that we have been averaging approximately 100 incoming portability families per month. Keeping pace with that volume while dealing with staffing shortages, technology issues, delayed billing, and compliance challenges has been extremely difficult. That is not an excuse. It is still our responsibility to properly administer the program. But it does help explain how the backlog grew over time.
Another major strain involves the federal Housing Choice Voucher portability system. My understanding is that if a receiving housing authority does not timely bill the initial housing authority within the federal time frame - commonly referred to as the 120-day window - the receiving agency can effectively end up absorbing that voucher without reimbursement. For an agency already managing significant operational and financial pressures, that creates a very serious challenge.
One thing our new Executive Director Felts Lewis recognized early on was that we had to stop the leak in the ship before taking on more water. As a result, HUD granted the Housing Authority of Wake County a 90-day moratorium on incoming portabilities, so the agency can focus on stabilizing operations, addressing the backlog, improving billing practices, and serving the families and landlords already in our system. While the agency was able to identify a solution in this particular case to help prevent displacement, we recognize that the broader portability and reimbursement challenges facing the agency require long-term operational and financial solutions.
This Board is actively trying to move the agency from being reactionary to being proactive. Quite frankly, when issues hit the news, individual cases can receive more urgency and attention. But that is not how a housing authority should operate. Tenants should not have to go to the media to get action on serious housing issues.
We have been having hard and honest discussions with leadership. We have rolled up our sleeves and become a working board because the tenants who rely on this program deserve stability, and the landlords who trusted this program deserve to be paid. We understand that landlords also have mortgages, taxes, payroll, maintenance costs, and financial obligations of their own.
The Board has strengthened oversight, created committee structures focused on accountability and recovery, and is working closely with county leadership to help move this agency toward stability, compliance, and restored public trust.
The public deserves transparency. Tenants deserve stability. Landlords deserve timely payments. And this Board is committed to doing the work necessary to help this agency get where it needs to be."
