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Snellville nonprofit Overcomers House seeks help after sudden rent hike and possible eviction
Summary
Overcomers House representatives told the Snellville mayor and council that the nonprofit’s building was sold without warning, its rent has sharply increased and the organization must find a new facility before an owner‑imposed vacate date; they asked the city for property leads, lender contacts and advocacy.
Overcomers House, a Snellville‑based nonprofit that runs a food pantry, quick housing assistance and volunteer outreach, asked the Snellville mayor and council on Oct. 13 for help locating a new facility and connections to nonprofit‑friendly lenders after its landlord sold the building and imposed a significant rent increase.
Okemos Williams, board chair, said Overcomers House has operated in Snellville since 2009 and provides food, housing stabilization and other services to families in Gwinnett County. He said staff and volunteers were notified only after the property was sold and that the new owner has insisted on a rent increase and a near‑term move‑out date.
Why it matters: Overcomers House provides frequent food distributions, short‑term hotel assistance and rapid‑rehousing help to local families. Losing its current space would disrupt pantry distributions, a thrift store that helps fund operations and housing‑stability services the nonprofit says it has provided for more than a decade.
What Overcomers House told the council
Ann Mills, executive director, said the organization had leased space in a roughly 10,000‑square‑foot facility for about eight years and has grown programs including a refrigerated truck used to pick up perishable donations. Mills said the management company and prior city staff helped negotiate an affordable lease in the past, but the building was sold without prior notice this year and the new owner has not agreed to an affordable renewal. Mills said the new owner gave the group an ultimatum and an owner‑imposed date to vacate; she said the organization has not yet secured a new site.
Volunteer coordinator Steven Willis presented usage and volunteer numbers, saying the group’s 2021–2024 figures included thousands of individuals helped and multiple hundred volunteers; he said in 2025 Overcomers House had already served more than 1,500 households comprising roughly 4,700 people.
The request to the city
Mills and Williams asked the council to: introduce them to nonprofit‑friendly lenders or potential donors; share listings or recommendations for suitable property or donated space in Snellville; and advocate on the nonprofit’s behalf with city, county or state officials as they work to secure a new facility. They said their budget for a leased interim space is about $3,000 per month and that they are also pursuing a property purchase with a lender but that nothing is finalized.
Council response and offers of help
Council members said they would follow up. One council member offered to visit Overcomers House and to look for resources; another council member with prior experience in refrigerated warehouses offered assistance with dismantling and re‑installing the group’s walk‑in freezer. City staff said they would gather the nonprofit’s contact information so staff could follow up and coordinate with county partners where needed.
Ending
Overcomers House asked the council for immediate help identifying space and financial resources so the nonprofit can continue food distributions, housing assistance and volunteer programs in Snellville; council members pledged to follow up and several offered specific assistance.
