A Houston apartment complex is under scrutiny after an employee sent an insensitive eviction notice to a recently unemployed Black mother.

Sonja Lee, a resident of The Steeples apartment building, said she was in her apartment at around 2 p.m. on Monday when she came across a letter outside her door demanding her family vacate their home, according to ABC13.

Next to a large, smiling emoji, the message begins: “Guess who’s moving? You!!!”

"Pay your outstanding balance, or release your apartment and turn in your keys to the leasing office by 6:00 p.m. today. Eviction will be filed promptly Tuesday morning, 8/18/2020," the letter read.

Unemployed Houston mom of 2 hit with insensitive eviction notice https://t.co/uSEKJ15sfS
pic.twitter.com/wizJc2KZpp

— ABC13 Houston (@abc13houston) August 19, 2020

Lee, who was let go from her job at Jack in the Box in March, said she fell behind on rent for June and July. According to a GoFundMe campaign Lee started Wednesday, she tried working from home but was conned into a scam and had her personal and banking information stolen.

The mother of two boys told ABC13 that she was denied unemployment and has appealed five times. She said she has reached out to property managers about her situation and that she found nothing entertaining about the letter mocking her misfortune.

"So y'all think it's funny to antagonize the person that's going through financial hardship with putting an emoji stating, 'Guess who's moving today?' There was nothing funny about that," Lee said.

Jon-Ross Trevino, an attorney with Lone Star Legal Aid, doesn’t believe the notice holds much weight, noting that a letter to vacate must be posted inside of a unit and typically gives recipients three days before an eviction is filed.

"This notice doesn't have any power and will not hold up in court," Trevino said. "Just because this notice is on your door, doesn't mean the landlord is correct in what they've done."

The state's eviction moratorium was lifted on July 24, and Lee told Chron.com that the notice felt like an oppressive and tactless procedure that may be applied to other tenants.

"It was very tacky and tasteless and very unprofessional. I felt like they were antagonizing tenants for not being able to pay their rent,” she said.

Swapnil Agarwal, the founder of Karya Property Management, which operates The Steeples, told ABC13 that the manager responsible for the note has been disciplined and that the letter was only circulated once. Agarwal also confirmed that Lee and her family are not under any eviction process.

Due to the insensitive nature of the notice, the company said an email has since been sent out reminding property managers they are only allowed to distribute preapproved flyers, according to ABC13.

The-Steeples

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