CLEARWATER, Fla. -- As Gov. Ron DeSantis announced another extension of Florida’s moratorium on evictions until September 1, renters and landlords alike who have struggled financially during COVID-19 are questioning the eviction freeze’s long-term impact.

One of those renters is Melissa Brochak, who was furloughed from her job as a YMCA child-care aid back in March because of the novel coronavirus. She filed for unemployment the very next day. 

To this day, she still hasn't received any unemployment insurance payments. It’s been four months.

“I think that's just what makes it more upsetting ... I feel like it's not the fault of any of these people who are going through this crisis right now,” Brochak said.

Now, Brochak and her live-in partner have an eviction case filed against them in the Pinellas County court. They weren’t able to pay rent after Brochak was furloughed. 

They had always paid on time in the almost four years living in their Clearwater apartment, they said.

“I was hit by a car [in December], and we still prioritized paying rent,” Brochak said, explaining that she missed out on several paychecks because of her injury and racked up thousands of dollars in medical bills. 

During that time, Brochak said she and her partner Kyle Levy went without as much food in order to make rent payments. At one point, they had to skip paying their water bill and had their water turned off, Brochak said. 

“We thought [our landlords] would be understanding in that regard: that we always were on time, always putting them as a priority, and always being respectful and kind,” Brochak said.

Brochak and Levy rent from Pristine Bay Realty, owned by Agnieszka (Agnes) and Boguslaw (Gus) Mistak. For their part, the Mistaks said they aren’t evicting the couple for nonpayment of rent, but rather for overstaying their lease, which ended June 30. 

The Mistaks also allege that the couple was aggressive toward them, solidifying their decision to try to part ways with the tenants. Text messages provided by the Mistaks indicate that the parties argued and were unable to reach an understanding. 

The property managers said they’ve been able to reach agreements with their other tenants — 50 percent of whom have been late on rent or unable to pay full rent since the pandemic began.

“We do have a lot of tenants that do not pay, and we always work things out with them,” Gus Mistak said. “We have lost a lot of money with a lot of different tenants to help them out.” 

But in this case, the parties couldn’t come to an understanding, and the landlords just want the couple out. With Florida’s eviction moratorium now extended until September 1, Brochak and Levy won’t actually be evicted — yet. 

However, Brochak questions whether kicking this rent freeze down the road another month is really the best long-term solution.

“I think they also need to think about forgiving rent or canceling rent or even finding funds to provide directly to landlords because I know they are struggling in their own regard as well,” Brochak said. “So I think it's more just providing funds to people directly, so people can live without fear of being homeless.”

She added that housing should be a basic human right.

“Regardless of this pandemic, this shouldn't be happening to anybody,” Brochak said. “I believe that housing should be a right. It's such a basic need of survival, I think, that's very important for everyone to have.”

Nearly a third of Floridians either missed last month’s rent or worry that they won’t be able to pay next month, according to a U.S. Census Bureau survey conducted in early July.

Molly Duerig is a Report For America corps member reporting on affordable housing for Spectrum News 13. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.