CAPE CORAL, Fla. — A Cape Coral family is on the brink of homelessness after discovering their rental home was part of a housing violation that has become increasingly common in the area, according to city leaders.
Watch senior reporter Emily Young learn about garage conversions popping up in Cape Coral:
Vernestine Lias and her family, who lost their home during Hurricane Milton, thought they had found stability when they moved into a 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom house in the North West neighborhood of Cape Coral earlier this year.
The $2,375 monthly rent included water, maintenance, and internet — a deal that seemed perfect for the family trying to rebuild their lives after the hurricane.
There was just one unusual condition: they were told they could not access the garage.
"The reason they said the garage was unusable was because they had converted the garage for another single family," Lias said.
Another family was already living in the converted garage space, but Lias said Innova, the property management company, assured her the arrangement was legal.
"So we moved in and everything went well, we change schools for my son, from Lehigh acres to Cape Coral. It was just the joy of my children and seeing them take that sigh and it was just this relief," Lias said.
The family's relief, however, was short-lived. Several weeks after moving in, Cape Coral code enforcement officers showed up at the property and informed Lias that the garage apartment was illegal and identified numerous other code violations, which Fox 4 confirmed.
Rather than addressing these violations, documents show that Innova Property Management told Lias the house had been sold and gave her family 30 days to vacate.
"There's no for sale sign in the yard, there's nothing," Lias said.
I couldn't find any evidence of a sale either. Popular real estate websites like Zillow and Realtor.com show no listing for the property. When I texted the Innova owner for clarification, my questions went unanswered.
Without financial resources to secure another rental, Lias and her family are now staying in a Fort Myers hotel room that is draining their bank accounts, uncertain about their future.
"I'm trying to get stable, so if there were red flags I didn't see them," Lias said.
The property Lias rented is colloquially referred to as a "houseplex." Cape Coral code enforcement calls it an “illegal garage conversion,” — a single-family home illegally converted to house multiple families. The City of Cape Coral has investigated at least 63 different illegal conversions since January, prompting the building department to add another staff member specifically to monitor these types of listings.
Lias continues her search for housing but reports seeing numerous advertisements for similar illegal garage apartments throughout the area.
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