(Eric Peterson | Utah Investigative Journalism Project) Jeremy Arrieta violated his lease and left Salt Lake City a year ago due to an internal septic tank leak and a fatal shooting outside the apartment The Solara Apartment is now called West City Center. He is now facing a lawsuit from Kirk Culimore Law Firm.

The following story was funded by the Financial Difficulty Reporting Project and reported by the Utah Investigative Journalism Project in collaboration with the Salt Lake City Tribune.

When Jeremy Arrieta lived in the Solara Apartments on the west side of Salt Lake City, septic tanks used to drip from the ceiling into his apartment. A video he took in the summer of 2020 shows black water drops with feces seeping from the bathroom ceiling above, spilling his own toilet in brown water.

"The worst apartment I've ever lived in," an angry Arrieta can be heard in the video.

Talking about his experience in an interview recently, Arrieta said that the problem with the apartment goes far beyond the plumbing problem. There was a fatal shooting on the ground outside last winter, which meant that he stayed mainly inside and only had to fight the cockroaches.

Things got so bad that he broke the lease a year ago and left. He is now facing a debt collection lawsuit from Solara's attorney Kirk Culimore Law Firm. The company handles approximately half of all evictions in the state and regards the powerful state senators Kirk Cullimore and R-Sandy as the company's heads.

Arrietta left his apartment because with the COVID-19 attack, the economy has stalled and the federal government has begun to work hard to keep renters away from the streets. During the pandemic, Solara changed its name to Downtown West and set up a stylish website to advertise its convenient location and modern facilities, telling potential renters that they are "excited to go home every night."

According to the records of the Utah Department of Labor Services, the apartment building also received more Federal Emergency Rental Assistance Program assistance from the state than anywhere else-$694,696 to pay for residents' rent as of November.

Reporters from the Utah Investigative Journalism Project visited the complex and talked with more than a dozen renters, but received no positive reviews.

Residents pointed out that the stairs in the basement were dilapidated, there were strange smells and suspicious people, and the smoke detectors were broken.

They noticed the stairwell, where homeless people would camp at night.

A missing cardboard-covered window was found in the yard, and a stair railing was fastened together with yellow warning tape.

Throughout the compound, renters say in English and Spanish—as if repeating a mantra—management "will not solve any problems."

(Eric Peterson | Utah Investigative Journalism Project) The stair railings of the Downtown West Apartment at 900 West Salt Lake City are fastened together with yellow warning tape.

Despite this, renters were told in November that they expected an increase of $100 to $400 per month to renew the lease.

Using a recent sunny afternoon to take a cigarette break, Jason Bryner recounted his experience as a resident of Solara. Although the management hired a security company to patrol the complex after the shooting in March 2021, crime still prevailed. Someone stole his truck in October.

"For a while, the police were here every weekend," he said, mainly in response to complaints about fighting.

The record of the complex performers sent by the Salt Lake City Police Department to the West End downtown has been very busy. From January 1 to November 30, 2021, the department received 1,122 service calls. These include 21 calls to the police, 39 calls to stolen vehicles, 8 calls to drug dealers, and 156 calls to fights (including domestic violence incidents).

Although Bryner said his rent has risen by more than $200, the management is still delaying the dispatch of pest control personnel to deal with rats and cockroaches.

"I have been on the waiting list for two and a half months," he said.

Chris Bailey, a resident of another apartment nearby, also complained about the problem of rats and cockroaches, and a neighbor banged on the roof in the middle of the night most nights, scaring his two young children awake. For his two-bedroom apartment, he said the rent increased from $1,080 to $1,380.

Bailey dragged the stereo to the back of a U-Haul truck, prompting reporters to ask him if he wanted to move out.

Pacific Ardent Capital, a California-based company under Laguna Point Properties, owns the Solara complex and 5,000 other rental units nationwide. It did not respond to a request for comment.

The Cullimore law firm was also contacted, but there was no response to questions sent via email.

Although the pandemic has caused severe damage to the overall economy, it has helped boost the real estate market. In Utah, the market is already accelerating before the spread of COVID-19 begins in late 2019 and early 2020.

According to the State Housing Market State Report issued by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah in October, Utah’s housing market has broken multiple records in the past year.

In the second quarter of 2021, house prices rose by 28.3%, second only to Idaho and second in the country. Partly because of existing demand, and partly because the Federal Reserve's intervention is aimed at avoiding economic depression by injecting cash into the banking system. By lowering interest rates and buying bonds, its policy allows more low-interest loans to home buyers.

As the pandemic disrupts the global supply chain and makes it difficult for home builders to obtain construction materials, the demand for housing will only worsen.

Increased demand pushed the median house price in Salt Lake County to a record $540,000 in the summer. Rising house prices also mean that apartments can charge higher rents.

According to real estate market reports, Utah has seen double-digit rent increases for the first time since the Great Recession, and the vacancy rate has never been lower in 16 years.

For Dejan Eskic, a senior researcher at the Gardner Institute, the unfortunate reality is that these increases tend to hurt low-income renters, who may lack the credit or savings for the down payment, or even try to buy a home.

"When you are at the lowest point, you can only rent," Eskik said. "You are really at the mercy of the landlord and can't find a better word."

Amy Rowland, chairman of the Utah Community Development Finance Alliance, agrees with this view, which helps fund and develop affordable housing.

Roland wrote in an email: “In a given market area, the rent of the worst-quality housing is almost always not significantly lower than the rent of the better, well-located unit.” Evictions and criminal records often make these renters. People are particularly vulnerable. "Frankly speaking, for-profit landlords with really low-quality units will take advantage of the despair of tenants."

According to Realtor.com, although rents in Salt Lake County have increased by an average of 12%, the rents reported by tenants in the West Side have more than tripled — between 25% and 27% — and are the least affordable tenants.

Paul Smith, head of the Utah Condominium Association’s state landlord lobby group, said that federal rent assistance is an incredible boon for landlords, renters, and the overall economy.

"They allow the money originally used for rent to flow to restaurants and other businesses, thereby saving or creating jobs, thereby helping Utah renters and the economy!" Smith wrote. "We should thank the landlord who helped the most people in this federal rental assistance, not slander them."

He pointed out that a survey conducted by the National Association of Apartments in 2019 showed that landlords had an average profit margin of only 9%. He said that given the meager profits and inflation, supply chain difficulties and labor shortages, landlords have no choice but to increase rents.

"[The landlord] felt it necessary to raise rents within the limits of the market," Smith wrote.

Renters pointed out that the complex provided convenience facilities in public areas, such as cement table tennis tables and new doors to some buildings, but they believed that the upgrade did not justify the increased rent.

Although Laguna Point Properties did not comment on this story, the company’s website discussed their corporate strategy and touted the strength of the rental market to investors because “the American dream of owning a home is out of reach for many people. ", especially "working-class renters" who can’t afford a house.

The website emphasizes that these investments will not be affected by construction issues like higher-end apartments. It also discussed the "value-added opportunities" brought about by "renovating and upgrading outdated apartment interiors and public areas, creating opportunities to promote rents." Value-added opportunities are highly sought after because they generate a huge return on investment," the website reads.

(Eric Peterson | Utah Investigative Journalism Project) Downtown West Apartment at 900 West Salt Lake City. The apartment management received nearly $700,000 in the emergency lease assistance program.

Smith said that renters who have serious complaints about their homes—such as plumbing, electricity, and heating problems—can submit a “notice of poor condition” to ask the landlord to resolve the problem. If the landlord does not comply, the tenant can pay for the repairs themselves and deduct it from the future rent, or they can cancel the lease and move out with impunity.

Arrieta fled his apartment because of brown rain dripping from the ceiling of his bathroom. He said that he did submit a notice of insufficient conditions. But he still represents his own interests against the Cullimore company that sued him for breach of the lease. Court data show that from January 1, 2020 to December 1, 2021, the company has filed 114 debt collection lawsuits against former residents in the western part of the city center.

Utah law also requires the landlord to refund the deposit or notify the tenant of the reason. However, if the landlord ignores the law, it is up to the tenant to deal with the legal system and file a lawsuit to get the deposit back.

Arrieta said that Solara kept his deposit and only notified him a few months later that the deposit was used to pay for the cleaning of the carpet-he disputed this claim.

"Most people end up paying just because they are afraid of the court or don't know their rights," Arrieta said. "Utah's laws are just to protect landlords and their wallets."

The rental assistance funds received also include funds that can be used to provide more services to benefit tenants, such as consulting and legal support. The Utah Department of Workforce Services interpreted the guidance of the US Treasury Department as meaning that the state can use the additional funds to pay the landlord’s legal costs for eviction. In contrast, Salt Lake County uses its similar funds to pay for expulsion defense lawyers through People’s Legal Aid.

Danielle Stevens, executive director of People's Legal Aid, said that even with federal funding, its employees "do their best" to defend the deportation. She hopes that more funds can be used for outreach and education to help people understand their rights.

"Education and awareness will be crucial for us next year," she said.

Although the Downtown West complex with more than 400 units has helped many residents, others are being evicted.

Diane Gallegos (Diane Gallegos) has lived in an apartment in the complex for a year. As management announced in November that it would increase rent for everyone else, Gallegos received an unpaid eviction notice. She was confused because her rent was paid through housing assistance. A few weeks later, Cullimore revised the complaint, saying that her eviction was a nuisance because there was a sex offender in her apartment, which caused the unit to be included in the state’s sex offender register.

However, the state registry showed that there were no criminals at the address or complex. Gallegos was confused and the landlord told her that the apartment must be removed from the registration list.

"If I don't know what happened or how it got there, what should I do?" Gallegos said.

Although it is terrible, this is her home-for her, it is terrible.

She said that she not only dealt with cockroaches, but also snakes that came out of her bathroom sink and dishwasher. She said someone asked her where she could buy methamphetamine on the complex site in her stairwell homeless camp, adding that during her teenage daughter’s first week in the basement, a drunk person The stranger fell into her bedroom through the window.

Nevertheless, before the West End, she waited for a year of housing assistance to allow her to own her own residence. Now, she faces being kicked out of her imperfect home.

"I have three children and I'm renting a house. I don't have the money to get up and go elsewhere," Gallegos said.

If you are experiencing an eviction, please consider visiting evictedinutah.com; this site can explain your rights and refer you to local legal and advocacy groups that can help you solve your problems and help you find more resources.

The Utah Investigative Journalism Project is a non-profit organization that collaborates with newspapers and broadcast media to provide in-depth reporting to help strengthen the historical role of these institutions as government monitors and defenders of the poor and oppressed. Consider donating.

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