'Everybody needs help sometime': Rural eviction drives cycles of housing instability

WMUK | By Julie J. Riddle

Published April 15, 2025 at 9:16 AM EDT

“If you've got a roof over your head and a kitchen to cook in, be thankful,” says Sturgis resident Tabitha Knight, recently housed at the Maple Towers Apartments after years of trying to secure stable housing.

About 450 St. Joseph County households are behind on their rent, averaging about $800 in rent debt per household. Many of them are one emergency away from becoming one of the 40,000 Michigan households removed from their home by eviction each year.

THREE RIVERS ― Despite a criminal record, Three Rivers resident John Smith ― not his real name ― found an apartment, a job, and, when his work hours kept getting cut, someone to help him pay his rent.

Still, his landlord has tried four times to evict him. So far, he’s found a way to stay put, but another eviction notice always lurks just around the corner. If he’s forced out, the rural region offers few other places for him to go.