ohio tenant landlord?

Question

do i have to continue paying rent if i found out that the home is under foreclosure and the landlords didnt tell me i have been living here for 9 months.i'm also in rental subsidy program who have also help paid a portion of my rent to .the landlords filed abankrupycy on november 13,2006 they haven't paid the taxes on either side of the duplex i'm renting.can i get my deposit back from these landlords

Answer 1

I am so sorry for your situation at this time of year. It sounds like you may have a type of rental subsidy, such as a Section 8 voucher. If that is the case, go to the agency who has supplied that to you to explain your situation. Legal Aid Society can help you for free, also. Do act very quickly in this situation! There use to be a way to place your rent in an escrow account for situations where landlords weren't keeping up the property in good hygiene conditions or for situations that would cause injury to the tenant. I don't think a landlord has to reveal their financial situation to anyone but the mortgage holder. You may be forced to move out or perhaps find out who holds the mortgage and negotiate with them the fact you are living there and plan to stay for a long time and have the means to pay the rent. Banks and mortgage companies don't want to be holding the bag on homes that produce no mortgage payments by the owner or not having a good tenant to pay their money back to them. We are going to see thousands of foreclosures in 2007 and for the next 3-6 years after that due to people who took out the wrong type of home loans with the wrong type of mortgages and 0% interest on them. There are also people who had terrible FICO scores that were given mortgages. Do you have a lease? I'd want you to find out from the Legal Aid Society or the local University with a law school for assistance on this as a pro bono case. If the landlord knew he/she was going to lose the home, and perhaps tried renting it out to save it, they were acting in good faith. If they knew they were going to lose the house, you were not given the facts. People can sell homes after renting for a while, but if they are decent people will ask the realtor to place in the sales ad that the tenants wish to stay if the property is bought by someone who invests in housing to make them rental property. Somehow it seems the owners knew they were going down the slippery slop of bankruptcy which means the house is the first to go. Only the state of Florida permits a person to keep their home in bankruptcy. I don't know when the home will go for sale as unpaid taxes but in my state it is happening this month. Pages upon pages in the weekend papers announce them. That's when anyone can go bid to buy a property but doesn't mean they are the new owners for 2-3 years when the previous homeowner can go pay itheir back taxes plus penalties and own it once again. If there are tenants next to you in the same situation, you can help one another on this one. But your first line of defense is the agency who is doing the subsidizing of your rent. The next one is the free lawyer as I mentioned above. Sometimes Section 8 people can buy a home of their own if their credit isn't destroyed. If you have a decent FICO score and can buy the home yourself with the help of the welfare department or agency (usually they don't tell people they can be homeowners!), you can rent the other side out for more money to maybe pay half or most of your rent. Look at your lease and read the rules of deposit. Usually they are to cover the first and last month's rent if you fail to pay on your end or leave without notice and are under a lease, pay for damages caused by the use of the property if unreasonable, destruction of property by pets or children, deposits for having pets, and unlawful use of property . Don't do what they are doing....not paying! Make sure you don't default on your rent. It could affect you finding another place. Just about everyone runs a credit check on people including being a tenant.

Answer 2

Yes, you must continue to pay rent until you receive written notification from either a court or the lender that the foreclosure is completed.

However the foreclosing lender is NOT required to honor your lease after the foreclosure is complete. If the landlord were to sell your unit then the new owner would have to honor your lease.

Since the landlord filed for bankruptcy it is possible that your unit will be sold rather than there being a foreclosure. So there is no way of knowing right now whether your lease will be honored or not. It would be a very good idea to start looking for a new place to live and be prepared to move at the conclusion of your current lease.

Answer 3

Yes, you need to continue paying your rent. Your lease is still a legally binding contract and will survive the transfer of ownership. If, at the end of your lease term, you decide to move, the (new) owner would be responsible for refunding your security deposit.

It would be a good idea to make sure that you have a written receipt for your security deposit (it can be written in as part of the lease). If not, it may be best to get that BEFORE the current owner is put out. The new owner may request proof that a deposit was paid. Also, it is a good idea to make sure you have a copy of your lease.

Good luck with your situation.

Answer 4

Yes, you MUST continue to pay rent.

The foreclosure or your landlord's bankruptcy will NOT affect your lease in any way. That includes your security deposit. Whoever buys the property at foreclosure -- most likely the bank -- MUST honor your lease for its duration. And they must refund your security deposit even if your landlord didn't hand it over to the new owner.

If you stop paying rent, you WILL be evicted.

The posters who stated that your lease will not survive the bankruptcy or foreclosure are WRONG. Ignore their advice!

Answer 5

The correct answer is that in most states your lease will survive the foreclosure and you simply pay your rent to the court appointed receiver, but not in all states.

You need to find out what the law is in your state regarding leases and foreclosures.

Yes, you must still pay your rent. Your landlord really is not obligated to disclose their personal financial problems to you.

Your deposit should be held in a trust account and not co-mingled with your landlords personal funds, so in theory it should be safe from their financial problems.

Answer 6

I am not sure if you need to pay or not. I do think you need an advocate and someone who can give you good legal counsel. You have several options

Contact the COHHIO -- Coalition for Housing and Homelessness in Ohio. They are an advocacy group for renters. 614-280-1984.

You can also call Ohio Legal Aide 614/737-0180

Finally you can file a complaint and get assistance from HUD 1-800-685-8470.

Hope this helps!

Answer 7

That's not illegal, no. But if the tenants are forced out because the owner failed to pay his mortgage, then it's the owner who is at fault, and may have to pay damages because of it. And of course the mortgage company will want what it's owed, too. If it comes to light that the owner has been earning plenty of money from rent, the mortgage company will be all too happy to go after that money.