Disabled tenant: GHA avoided calls, messages

GALLUP

A Diné resident in Gallup says she is being overly charged for rent after filing a disability claim.

Maggie Billiman has been living in Gallup for over 20 years, staying in an apartment at Sagebrush Apartments on the south side of town.

Billiman moved after dealing with too many domestic disturbances throughout the years.

She moved into a new place not too far from her old place on Arnold Street.

Everything seemed fine until Billiman suffered an injury that left her with a fractured jaw.

“I needed surgery and time off to recover,” said Billiman.

Billiman met with doctors and learned she could file for disability insurance. Since the apartments offer rent on a sliding scale affected by income, age and disability, she assumed her rent would be adjusted downward.

While Billiman was recovering in the hospital, the building’s owner, Gallup Housing Authority, billed her for $3,000 in back rent — the amount she would have owed had she not qualified for a deduction.

Billiman’s daughter, Kelsey Gregory, signed up as a personal caregiver to take care of Billiman at her home while she recovered from her surgery, and says she informed GHA of her change in income and employment status on Oct. 8, 2015, seven days after she became a registered caregiver. She said she also understood that Billiman should have qualified for a lower rent payment, and was eager to get the matter settled with GHA.

To make sure the message was received, Billiman and Gregory made a second attempt the next day and walked into GHA, where, they say, they left a message for GHA Housing Manager Selina Paradise.

Billiman made more calls and was finally able to talk to Paradise in November of last year. Paradise allegedly told her she would set up a meeting with her and Gregory through a letter to go over Billiman’s situation.

Billiman says she never received a letter.

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