Steve De Wolf is not the average UNM student, but starting Aug.1, he will have at least one thing in common with many undergraduates - trouble paying his rent.
A 53-year-old University Studies major, De Wolf, like many of the other residents of 8915 Central Ave., is a disabled veteran. He has lived in one of the property's 13 one-bedroom apartments for five years.
Until he received a letter from St. Martin's Hospitality Center Inc., a local nonprofit organization that owns the property, De Wolf has paid $265 a month in rent - one-third of the money he receives from the U.S. Veteran's Administration each month.
In the letter, St. Martin's informed all residents that as of Aug.1, rent would be $410 a month.
De Wolf says the letter violates the rental agreement he had signed with the property's previous owner, Rural Housing, Inc., which does not expire until Oct. 31. His lease states that it "binds and benefits both parties and any successors."
St. Martin's acquired the property from RHI in a January bankruptcy court sale.
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De Wolf said he doesn't think St. Martin's will in any way honor his lease and that it plans to evict all the residents if they do not sign new leases.
St. Martin's officials refused to answer Daily Lobo questions.
De Wolf said he plans to sue St. Martin's if he is evicted.
"That's our only choice and we're still facing eviction," he said.
Chris Fogel, executive director of St. Martin's, told the Albuquerque Journal that $410 a month is a reasonable rent for the property. He also told the Journal that RHI received Housing and Urban Development money to help subsidize the cost of the monthly rents.
Mike Griego, the Albuquerque field office director for HUD, said RHI never received any subsidy money from the feds for the Central property.
"RHI was able to keep the rents down through some other income sources," Griego said.
De Wolf and Marvin Ward, a 67-year-old disabled veteran who also lives on the property, say that many of their requests for maintenance and repairs have fallen on deaf ears at St. Martin's.
De Wolf added that, before the Journal report, none of the residents had received maintenance request slips since St. Martin's assumed ownership and management of the property.
Ward says he has asked St. Martin's repeatedly to fix the wheelchair ramp that leads into his apartment, but it has never done so.
"I have to use a wheelchair and a cane to get around sometimes, but I can use my voice just fine," he said.
"St. Martin's won't even give us rent receipts unless we make them," De Wolf said. "And if we do press them for the receipts, or for maintenance request slips, they call it harassment."
De Wolf called city housing officials to come and inspect the property about two weeks ago, he said.
Patrick Sanchez, a residential code enforcement inspector for the city of Albuquerque who did the inspection, said there were some minor violations such as leaky faucets and inadequately constructed cabinetry, but that the property was "by no means substandard."
"Some of the units were better than others, but overall, it is a pretty nice property," Sanchez said.
He added that a routine re-inspection will take place sometime next month.
