NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Some renters with section 8 vouchers are struggling to find a landlord that accepts it.
Sharon Barbee has a THDA voucher, and she’s at the end of her rope. She said she has heart failure and other health issues.
"When I go home, I think about everybody, even though I don’t have anything, everybody that knows me can tell you, I’ll help anybody, I love everybody even if they did me wrong, and I feel like how am I the one like this?" Barbee said.
Her rental search has been a humbling experience.
"My children have had to live with their godparents a lot of their lives because I can’t afford a bigger place," Barbee said.
She has to be out of her home by November because the property was sold. Now, she’s racing the clock to find a home before her voucher expires.
For perspective, in 2022 in Davidson County, the Metropolitan Development and Housing Authority has 717 landlords that accept section 8 vouchers. In 2021, the number of landlords added to the program was greater than the number of landlords who left it.
However, there's still a need for more. If you're an interested landlord email MDHA Director of Rental Assistance Norman Deep at ndeep@nashville-mdha.org
MDHA opened a waiting list for the elderly and disabled this week. In May, they plan to open another waiting list for families.
In the meantime, people like Sharon are still looking for a home as they apply for programs.
"I love my kids and it hurts my soul that I don’t have a big enough place to have them all.” Barbee said. “I have good kids, in college playing basketball doing what they’re supposed to be doing, not running the streets, and that’s important for me to get a house so that they can say, 'this is momma’s house.'"
Sharon has also looked in other counties. She has a Go Fund Me page to help her during this time.
