ELYRIA, Ohio — Neighbors in an Elyria retirement community are worried about being priced out of their homes. Several residents of the Twin Lakes Manufactured Housing Community reached out to News 5 with concerns about their property management company drastically increasing monthly fees.
“We love this community. We wouldn’t move from this community,” said Larry Vidra, who’s lived at Twin Lakes for a decade. “It’s the people here, everybody really enjoys living here. But they’re making it so it’s harder to afford for a good number of people.”
Vidra explained the 330-lot neighborhood was taken over in 2019 by property management company Legacy Communities, LLC. He said since the property changed hands, the cost of living in the 55-plus community has soared.
At Twin Lakes, residents own their homes and pay monthly homeowners association fees for the land where their homes sit. Following the acquisition of the neighborhood, Vidra saw his monthly rent jump by 5% for the first two years. This year, he’s paying another 8% more. Though residents have not received official notice, property managers informed some neighbors they can expect an additional 9% hike in 2023.
The fees are steeper for incoming residents. Some neighbors who have tried to sell their homes recently discovered new residents will pay $850; the rent is more than double what most people were paying in 2021.
Neighbors said modest improvements, such as new blacktop pavement, pickleball courts and a fire pit, hardly justify the increased costs. At the same time, some amenities that attracted residents, like private security, snow removal and cleaning teams for community spaces, have been cut completely or scaled back.
“We’ve given up our right to increase our income, thinking this is what we need to live on and this is what we’re going to need to survive. Well, when someone pulls the rug out from under you and says, ‘No. You can stay here, but you’re going to pay this amount now.’ It just seems like they’re changing the rules as it goes. And it doesn’t seem fair,” said Deborah Yan.
It’s a similar situation to what neighbors at Navarre Village in Stark County told News 5 they were experiencing earlier in the week. That property, which is also a 55-plus community, was acquired by Legacy Communities in September.
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Similarly, residents at Twin Lakes are finding themselves faced with difficult decisions.
“I’m scared,” said Sandra Schoonmaker, a widow living on social security. “I have a friend who sells plasma, who lives here, to help her with her income. That’s the course I’m thinking I may need to turn to.”
“A lady in here, a 72-year-old woman who lives by herself, had to go back to work to try to make her payments,” Vidra added. “She cries every night because she’s on her feet every day.”
He explained the neighbors have been reaching out to local, state and national politicians for recourse, but have received little to no response. They’re appealing to the Elyria Fair Housing Board, claiming the soaring rent they’re experiencing could amount to exploitation of seniors.
In Ohio, there are no rent control or stabilization regulations. On the contrary, a law was passed in June that prohibits rent control and gives landlords and property managers authority to raise rent without limits.
Many of the Twin Lakes residents told News 5 their homes are becoming increasingly unaffordable. At the same time, it’s difficult to sell their homes and move elsewhere because buyers aren’t interested in paying the increased fees.
“I can’t move forward and I’m just moving backwards now,” Schoonmaker said.
News 5 has repeatedly attempted to contact Legacy Communities, LLC in the past week, but we have not heard back from the company.
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