Summit County’s housing stock for low-income renters is aging and deteriorating. Tenants have little choice but to rent unsafe and unhealthy spaces. Many are unaware of their powerful legal rights and how to properly exercise them. From 2016 to 2022, approximately 21,000 eviction actions were filed against tenants in Akron Municipal Court. In that same time period, only 173 tenants sought to protect their rights to safe and healthy housing using the rent escrow procedure provided under Ohio law.
The rent escrow process is complex and difficult to navigate and will remain an underutilized tool to improve the quality of housing in our community unless time and resources are devoted to giving tenants the tools they need to be successful.
We are grateful to have received a grant from the Akron Community Foundation to support work on the rent escrow process.
Join us at this FREE training on rent escrow and solutions to unsafe housing conditions.
Tuesday, July 28, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the American Red Cross, 501 W. Market St., Akron
Refreshments provided
This event is meant for court personnel, local government, and professionals who support low income tenants, e.g. social workers, housing counselors, attorneys, etc. CLEs have been applied for from the Ohio Supreme Court.
Please register by July 23.
AGENDA
8:30- 9:00 a.m. Registration
9:00-10:15 a.m. Welcome and presentation on The Rent Escrow Process
10:15 -10:30 a.m. Break
10:30-11:15a.m. How our local courts handle an escrow application from start to finish
- Presenters: Magistrate Scott Newman, Akron Municipal Court; Russ Hunt, Deputy Clerk, Civil Division, Stow Municipal Court
11:15-11:45 a.m. Fair Housing and Addressing Poor Housing Conditions
- Presenter: Sarah LavenderNees, Education & Outreach Director, Fair Housing
Contact Service
11:45 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Break
12:00 p.m.-12:30 p.m. Code Compliance and Addressing Poor Housing Conditions
- Presenter: Duane Groeger, R.E.H.S., B.A. City of Akron, Code Compliance
Commissioner, Code Compliance Division. 12:30 p.m. -1:00p.m. Community Organizations Taking Steps to Address Poor Housing
Conditions
- Presenter: Gino Hayes, Deputy Director, Canton For All People