JACKSON, Wis. — Residents at Green Valley Mobile Home Park in Jackson are frustrated to learn their rent is about to go up in March.
Thelma Castelow and her husband survive on a fixed income and disability checks, something they said will make it tough to keep living at Green Valley with a $140 rent increase, which they learned about Friday when a letter was taped to their door.
"It's money you don't know where you're going to get it from!" Castelow said. "Here we are at the end of our lives, and for everything to be going up, you can't afford your medicine or anything. So, how the hell do you come up with that extra week's worth of food when they're sucking the life out of you? I just don't know how else to put it?"
She and her husband bought their home 10 years ago. She understands to some, $525 rent isn't much, but affordability is paramount to her and her neighbors.
"It's not a posh community," she said. "It's a very setback and poor community."
Another new fee is $35 for new pets, even though people own their homes and only rent the plot lot they sit on.
"If my dog pees in my house, that's my problem!" Connie Nehring said. "You don't have to fix it or clean it!"
When asked what questions they have for the property managers, the two responded:
"Why such a jack in the rent?" Nehring said.
"What are you doing with all of this money?" Castelow said. "That's what I want to know!"
TMJ4 News called the owners and went to the manager's office to ask these questions, which they declined to answer.
"Not today, do you have a business card?" someone on staff said. "I'll give it to my superior, who will probably get back to you tomorrow."
The office was tense with other residents expressing how upset they were.
"It makes me so uncomfortable, you guys. Come on, really?" a woman inside the office said. "Two-day notice of a change. Oh, by the way, your rent's going to go up! By the way, you have to pay for garbage and for pets!"
Castelow called and left a heated message to the new managers.
"I said you ain't no better than dirty politicians," she said. "I'm sorry! It's sickening that you come in here and you want to do these kinds of things to people who barely survive."
A viewer emailed Washington County reporter Marcus Aarsvold asking him to cover this story at Marcus.Aarsvold@Tmj4.com.
According to the Green Valley property manager's letter, the rent increase is due in part to "expenses required to maintain and operate the community."
This decision was made after careful consideration of market conditions, property taxes, utility costs and the ongoing expenses required to maintain and operate the community.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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