Illegal Eviction (NJ)?

Question

My landlord (community development) sent me a warning letter (Notice to Cease) to stop "harrassing" our downstairs neighbor, re: smell that comes thru our kitchen counter w/ the strong Indian food she cooks.
Anyway, neighbor kept complaining & they sent a "Demand for Possession" letter, which stated to vacate property within 3 business days & the lease was terminated.
Luckily I went to Landlord/Tenant office & they stated that was not the proper way to evict someone, that I should have had a notice from the county I reside in & a court date.
My question is: Can I consider this harrassment by the management company by sending me this fake eviction letter? Can they do this kind of thing? Is it illegal what they sent me?
Luckily I knew about the landlord/tenant office & didn't pack up my things & move w/o no where to go !
Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

Those are not "fake eviction" letters. I have no idea what kind of morons are in that "Landlord/Tenant office" you went to, but they gave you incorrect advice. The two notices that you received were the first two steps in the eviction for cause process in New Jersey.

In New Jersey, there are statutory notices that must be served on tenants before action is taken to evict for cause. The first is a "Notice to Cease" and the second is a "Notice to Quit" which is the demand for possession. If you do not move out on or before the date in the Notice to Quit, the landlord will file in court for eviction for cause with you as a holdover tenant.

After your landlord files in court, you will be served at your residence and by mail. When you get to court, you can tell the Judge your side of the story. If the Judge agrees that you were harassing your neighbor, he will issue a Judgment of Possession to your landlord. Your landlord will take this and file for a Warrant for Removal. After the Warrant is posted, you will have three days before the lockout. You can always apply for a stay of 1 week for an orderly removal, and the lockout will be delayed for 1 week.

"Can they do this kind of thing?" Hell yes. A Notice to Cease is very serious. It is a notice that states that you must "cure", meaning that you need to stop whatever it is that you have been doing. It is your one and only opportunity to fix the situation and stop the eviction process. If you continue doing whatever it is that you were told to stop, you get a Notice to Quit which is the landlord officially terminating your tenancy. If you don't move, you become a "holdover" tenant, which means that landlord has already terminated your tenancy for cause, but he needs the courts assistance in removing you since you did not go on your own.

Answer 2

You can consider harrassment but it might look as if you are racist because of their taste in food and their indian. Is the eviction letter on company letter head? Because they can say it is your word against yours. Or the indian might have stuck it on your door. I understand that smell of kuri. I used to have inspect properties after an indian family leaves and that smell stays there. But the real winners would be the attornies. Look on purchasing a house.

Answer 3

You can sue them civily, and you would probably win too. You should not however harrassed the down stairs neighbor. It really isn't thier problem. It is the landlords. there is something wrong with the apartment if the smell goes that strongly into your apartment. If your landlord is Indian, you might be able to get him for racism

Answer 4

Who in their right mind is going to go to court and tell a Judge they have a Illegal apartment? YOU had a Illegal apartment. hello?????? If tenant knew this before he rented it.......He helped commit a illegal fraction. You obviously didn't have a Lawyer. This doesn't take a Lawyer to figure out. An old rule goes. "You don't go to court with dirty hands". .