Cape Town – Rumours of a looming mass eviction at the Steen Villa complex in Steenberg are not true, management company Sohco has said, contradicting a group of residents who have taken the developer to court, claiming it had sent out hundreds of eviction notices to residents.
The residents, who occupied the steps of the Western Cape High Court on Wednesday, were adamant more than 350 tenants would be kicked out at the end of the month.
They decried what they said were “illegal evictions and high rentals”, allegedly imposed on them by Sohco management.
Tina Schoor, a community leader at the forefront of the protest, accused Sohco of unscrupulous conduct, saying the company had no compassion when it dealt with the residents, many of whom are former backyard dwellers.
“We are tired of the unlawful evictions and the escalating rental costs,” Schoor said on Wednesday. “I mean, these people come from destitute backgrounds; they are (former) backyard dwellers, they are single mothers with children.
“These people have never owned houses before and this is what Socho didn't do, which they should have done; they didn’t sit down with these tenants to explain the clauses and the terms and conditions of the lease,” Schoor said.
Barely a year after moving into the 700-unit development in 2010, Schoor said Sohco had “hurriedly” issued eviction notices to a number of tenants for non-payment of rent monies.
“They (Sohco) have refused to negotiate with the tenants, they've refused to make proper arrangements with us, to hear our side of the story – because a lot of us have problems, financial problems.”
Schoor said she currently pays R3 000 a month for a two-bedroom flat.
Another resident, Gill Adams, 30, who shares a flat with her mother who is a pensioner, said they did not completely understand the terms and conditions of the rental agreement.
Adams said they were served an eviction notice and had been given until February 9 to leave. Since moving in six years ago, their rent had increased by R1 700 to R3 500.
Sohco chief executive Heather Maxwell said on Wednesday the most recent eviction from Steen Villa was in February 2015.
"A small group of tenants stopped paying rent last year and, after all our attempts to resolve the situation were unsuccessful, we started an eviction process through court.”