Residents say they are being forced from troubled Orlando apartment complex

ORLANDO, Fla. — Residents of an Orlando apartment complex said it now looks like something out of a post-apocalyptic movie.

Channel 9's Mark Joyella has learned the owner of Washington Shores Village is in the foreclosure process, half of the complex is boarded up and that many of the remaining residents are being forced out, with nowhere to go.

Several residents told Joyella that since the complex was taken over by government-sponsored Fannie Mae, they've been pressured to get out, and as soon as people leave, the apartments are boarded up.

Erica Hyatt, whose family is one of the few still living in the complex, said she feels more and more isolated.

She said there are very few people living around her.

In April, Channel 9 reported that complex owners owed the city of Orlando $2 million in code violations and residents were complaining of serious maintenance problems.

The Fannie Mae program took possession of the complex over the summer. Residents said they hoped things would improve.

"I thought she was coming to do, do, do and she ain't done, done, done nothing," said Hyatt.

Residents said maintenance problems are still going unresolved, with property managers urging people to move out.

They said anyone who doesn't pay their rent on time gets a notice that gives them a few weeks to get out.

A representative for Fannie Mae told Joyella that despite the boarded-up buildings, currently there are no plans to close down the complex. The priority has been addressing serious safety concerns. Some residents, the representative said, were found to be living in conditions that were "alarming."

"What are you doing closing everything up? You're not fixing anything, you're closing it up. You're kicking all of us out. Why are you kicking us out? (You have) given us no reason or explanation why we've got to go," said Hyatt.

The Fannie Mae representative said Fannie Mae is offering families financial assistance to help with moves and working to connect families with nonprofits that may help them find new homes.

The representative said families who pay their rent are not being told to move.

WFTV