The following blog post was written and submitted anonymously by one of our members. If you have a compelling story to tell, please share it with us by sending an email to renotenantsunion@gmail.com with the subject “Member Stories.”
“I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept.”
Angela Davis
I didn’t ask for a fight. I didn’t want one.
I gave every opportunity for de-escalation—for basic human decency and respect. But when you report mold, water damage, rotting floors, and sparking electrical units over and over—and nothing changes? When you’re skipped on the waitlist for a safer unit while others are prioritized? When your landlord retaliates with gag clauses, illegal fees, and threats?
You realize the system isn’t broken. It’s working exactly as designed.
I didn’t expect to file formal complaints, tossing them like spaghetti on the wall to see what sticks. I didn’t expect to find a passion for housing justice buried in all that bureaucracy. I didn’t set out to be an example of what rural tenants endure, or to expose the legal loopholes that protect landlords like mine—and the 30+ LLCs I’ve now linked to them.
But then the check came.
After asking for receipts for bogus move-out charges, I received a printed refund check labeled “Extortion Money.” Not just petty—a threat. A dare.
That moment changed everything.
Rather than be angry without direction, I turned that anger into action. I researched housing codes, licensing laws, statutes. I learned my rights. And in the process, I uncovered what appears to be a shell operation: over 30 LLCs registered to a single house in a Utah town.
I didn’t expect to be the person who documented it all. Who filed complaint after complaint. Who refused to be quiet. I contacted legislators. I reported everything. And I realized—I wasn’t doing it just for me.
My story isn’t unique. It’s systemic.
Our governor vetoed protections that could have helped renters like me. Meanwhile, over 20 of my repair complaints were ignored or dismissed, leading to what became a constructive eviction. A system this broken allows landlords to operate unchecked, while tenants are punished for speaking out.
We all deserve better. Housing is a human right. Everyone deserves a safe, habitable place to live. Landlords should be held to enforceable standards. Tenants should know their rights—and be protected when they assert them.
So even if most of the doors I’ve knocked on remain closed… I keep going. Because every complaint I’ve filed creates a record. It says: this happened. It was real.
Maybe next time, someone will take it seriously. Maybe this time they will.
I don’t know. Many of my complaints are closed. Some are still open. The process is slow. Justice is elusive.
But change doesn’t come overnight. Sometimes you have to fight the system from within—by doing everything their way.
Let what happened to me be a warning: even when you follow the law, file the paperwork, and play by the rules—there still may be no justice.
But silence? That only benefits the people in charge.
My story may not be the most important. But our stories—together—are.
That’s why I won’t be silent. I’ll follow the process.
And I’ll fight to change it.
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