MISSOULA, Mont. — Tenants at an apartment complex on Dakota Street in Missoula say they’re facing uncertainty and frustration after learning they must either buy their homes or move out when their leases expire.
Residents of 1335 Dakota Street came home in August to find notes taped to their doors announcing that their building had been sold.
“We love it here. We love our homes, like none of us have had a desire to move,” said tenant Amanda Shuk, who has lived at the complex for over a year.
Shuk said the notice informed tenants that the building’s new owners would be entering their units within 24 hours.
“I ended up writing a letter which basically said, you know, I know this is a way that you’re trying to run a business and make a profit,” Shuk said. “But we are people with lives here and we have feelings, just think of us. You’re uprooting us from our homes. This isn’t just a business proposition for you.”
Property records show the new owner is RHSC LLC, a Utah-based company. NBC Montana attempted to contact the company but did not receive a response.
A listing on Ink Realty Group advertises a one-bedroom, one-bathroom unit at the property for $265,000. Shuk said the owners have told tenants that their current leases will be honored but that they’ll need to purchase their apartments or leave when their contracts end.
“This is happening all the time,” Shuk said. “Out-of-state people coming and buying complexes and then pushing people out, pushing Montanans out of their homes.”
Shuk said tenants have also dealt with extended maintenance issues, including more than a month without hot water, as they wait for clarity about their housing future.
NBC Montana reached out to Missoula Property Management, which oversees the units, for information the new owners. They did not reply to a request for comment.
“Just the abruptness of all this has been really Just sad and you know almost traumatizing because just all of a sudden ‘Okay, your home has been sold,'” Shuk said.
