I have been out of work since February 2010 and actively looking for work but I haven’t had much luck.  My house is in foreclosure and the utilities are being shut off one by one.  I need help/advice.

I am a single parent of three kids well they aren’t kids anymore.  I have a daughter who is 21 she’s a student nurse in college to obtain her RN, I have a son he’s 20 he is an electrician and starts his last year of apprenticeship and my youngest son who is 18 he is a welder and fantastic baseball player, he graduated high school this year and a college picked him up and he got a 2 year scholarship for his pitching abilities for baseball.  All three of them are great people they have their own vehicles, pay their own car insurance, car payments, cell phone bills, personal needs and their own food and still manage to try to help me the best they can.  They even pay for their own school things and medical expenses.

I was with a man for 16 years we never married.  We had decided for me to by the house which was my grandparent’s and they had bought it the month and year I was born.  A year after I bought the house I lost my job and he walked out on me.  When he left I was devastated, I wasn’t expecting it at all what so ever.  The money I wish I had today that I paid in tolls to drive on top of the bridge near my house and just jump I would have a lot of money.

Actually a year ago I had a nervous breakdown and my daughter had me admitted into a mental hospital actually that was two years ago.  They wouldn’t release me unless she signed me out or the doctor released me.  I called her crying I just remember her words exactly “Mom you need help enough because we need our mom back” I knew she was right so I stayed it ended up being seven days.  There I was diagnosed with Bipolar I and a Manic Depressant I am medicated but I feel I am alone and I will never be normal!  I don’t have friends because I just can’t handle drama and my family isn’t much support with this condition they don’t know how to handle me nor do they try.  I haven’t done much right in my life but with these three I have.

I have a hard time trusting people! I always try to help others and make others happy instead of myself! I put everyone else before me! In the end I always turn out to be the bad person! My self-esteem is low and I need to work more on me and the hell with helping others!  I hate silence I cannot sit in a room with silence that just brings my worst enemy out who is my mind! 

I do enjoy different types of music and reading.  I find relaxation in crocheting, I find my laughter and to keep living life in my 3 precious kids.  I do enjoy the beach, skiing and I love baseball!

The Philadelphia Phillies are my favorite team.  My daughter and I coached a T-ball team this year for the first time and we had a blast it was so much fun we are doing next year and we didn’t even know any of the kids or the parent’s we did it to get me out of the house and to help my mind.

But I am here for any help or advice anyone can give me at all!

Thank you to all of you in advance for you advice and help!

Daneta

I am a positive person, hard working and would not be doing this unless I was at the end of my rope. If it was not for my 2 kitties and doggie, I would not be alive right now.

After 2 months of fighting to save our little girl, the fight has been lost.
Our other baby was suddenly ill too! She had a inguinal hernia and had 6" of her intestine was removed and the hernia. She went to rainbow bridge June 24, 2010.

These were not pets they were my kids. My heart is torn apart.

In that fight we have paid out of pocket over $3,000 and still owe our vet and the emerg. vet a total of $2,000 more.

This has set me very far behind on my bills. I am about to lose my car and my house!

I am so sad, I work really hard and they already love me, at my new job but when I drive home or on a day off, I ball my eyes out, the stress of getting down to the wire of losing my house and car is not helping, I called them but they do not even care.  I am desperate and so very depressed.

I have pawned what I was able, stopped unnecessary bills, like my cell phone, tv, netflix, sold my wedding ring, tv, tv stand, coffee and end tables, had a garage sale, got a 2nd job. But it is not enough.

I know there are bad people who lie, I have been verified here on microgiving and I will send you the photos of my bills from the vet if you would like to see them.

Thank you to everyone's kind words, prayers and thoughts and those who have donated funds.

It is truly truly cherished.

Hello Everyone,

Looking for anyone who needs help in saving there home from forclosure, I can help you modify your loan and I need help with someone who can help me with a website. I am a mortgage consultant looking to help who ever needs it for a donation please but if you dont have it I know how it is.I have been layed off since June 1 without unemployment and things are very bad I have a 4 year old and it looks like it is going to be a bad holiday but I trust God that he will keep us blessed with a meal on the table and our lights on if you think you can help all I can say is Thank You and may God Bless you and your family

any donation will be paid back with interest

ok someone please help me...my childrens father took of and left me with two babies ages one and two...we are about to lose our home if i dont get the bank $7,000 dollars my lights and water have already been disconnected and i feel like im gonna lose it like a failure as a mom i mean whats gonna happen when me and my kids have to live on the streets please someone help...i have a verified paypal account the balance is zero but i am hoping someone will change that even if its just a dollar every little bit will help please i dont know what else to do i would even be willing to pay it back once i get on my feet please help me!!!!

Tenants Caught in Foreclosure: Who Gets the Rent?

by Attorney Janet Portman

Learn to whom tenants should pay rent when landlords fall into foreclosure.

Tenants who learn that their landlords are in default on the mortgage (or already in foreclosure) are often confused about who is entitled to the rent money. Residents are likely to hear demands from many quarters -- the desperate owner, a management company, or a bank. It’s important to know who is -- and who isn’t -- entitled to the rent check and who is obligated to maintain the rental during this period of time.

Before the Foreclosure: Who Gets the Rent After a Default?

Lending banks (the mortgage holders) typically attach a rider, or special agreement, to the mortgage or deed of trust documents when a buyer intends to use the building as a rental. This rider, called a 1-4 Family Rider (Assignment of Rents), is used by lenders in every state for properties that have one to four rental units. Its main purpose is to give the lender the right to receive the rent when the buyer has defaulted on the mortgage. (You can get a copy of the 1-4 Family Rider from the Freddic Mac website, at www.freddiemac.com. Search for “1-4 Family Rider.”)

To understand how the rider works, think like a banker for a minute. The property is generating income and the buyer is falling behind on his mortgage. In order to cut its losses as quickly and as thoroughly as possible, the lender wants to get its hands on the rent.

Once the lender gives the owner a written notice of default, the lender has the right (except in Michigan) to receive the rent directly from the tenants. Lenders have to give written notice to the tenants, and they typically do so by letter, posted notice on the property, or in person.

Repairs and Maintenance While Paying the Bank

Even though the bank is receiving the rent payments, all other rights and responsibilities that the owner/landlord has with respect to the tenants remain in place. Until the bank actually forecloses, the owner is still the owner. This leads to problems if the tenants need maintenance or repairs done on the rental unit.

Landlords are often unwilling to make repairs. Without a source of income from the rental property, most owners will be unable (or unwilling) to maintain it. For the tenant, however, the owner’s disillusionment is beside the point when it comes to safe and secure rental housing, because in every state but Colorado and Arkansas, landlords must maintain fit and habitable rental housing. How does a tenant enforce this right against a demoralized (and possibly broke) owner?

The lender is not obligated to help. According to the Family Rider, the lender must apply the rent money to property management costs, including maintenance, before it applies the money to the unpaid mortgage. But the Rider explicitly does not obligate the lender to assume the maintenance duties of the owner. Unless there’s a specific local or state law to the contrary, the lender’s right to receive rent money doesn’t turn that lender into the landlord for purposes of maintaining the property.

If conditions seriously deteriorate to the point where the home is not fit to live in, tenants may find themselves stuck between an owner who has no ability to take care of business, and a lender who has no obligation to do so.

Self-help remedies are tricky. Tenants may need to avail themselves of a tenant’s “self-help” remedy, such as rent withholding and repair-and-deduct (not all states give these remedies to tenants). (To learn more about self-help remedies, see Nolo’s Renter’s Rights: Repairs, Privacy & Safety area.)

But here is where things can get truly tricky: Rent withholding and repair-and-deduct work because they pressure owners to take care of repairs so that they can receive the rent. But banks are not familiar with property management and maintenance, and they have no legal obligation to maintain the property (the owner retains that duty). Not paying the bank is not likely to result in prompt attention to that leaking roof or broken water heater -- it’s more likely to result in a notice to vacate or, particularly in situations where tenants survive the foreclosure, continued inattention until conditions deteriorate further.

Help From the Government

In many cities, housing and health departments are charged with responding to unsafe and unsanitary conditions in rental housing. They typically have powers that range from ordering the owners to take care of business (under threat of contempt of court), to taking over the property altogether and running it until they’ve fixed the problems (and charging the owner for the privilege).

Although these government agencies can, and should, still do their jobs, their intervention may be ineffective. The agencies will be dealing with an owner who has no resources to contribute (and who may even be impossible to locate), and a bank who has no legal duty to step up. Results will differ when the government takes over because the efficiency of local and state agencies varies tremendously.

If you need to notify the landlord and bank of needed repairs in your rental, be as specific as possible. Nolo’s eForm, Tenant’s Notice of Needed Repairs, provides the format and instructions to make sure your demand is correct.

What to do if you are roommates?

Renting With Others

Learn to avoid disputes among roommates or with the landlord.

When two or more people sign the same rental agreement or lease -- or enter into the same oral rental agreement -- they are cotenants and share the same legal rights and responsibilities. However, there's a special twist. One cotenant's negative behavior -- not paying the rent, for example -- can affect everyone's tenancy.

When One Roommate Doesn't Pay Rent

Cotenants may decide to split the rent equally or unequally, depending on their personal wishes. However, such agreements don't affect the landlord. Each cotenant is independently liable to the landlord for all of the rent. Landlords often remind cotenants of this obligation by inserting into the lease a chunk of legalese that says that the tenants are "jointly and severally" liable for paying rent and adhering to terms of the agreement. If one tenant can't pay a share of the rent in a particular month, or simply moves out, the other tenant(s) must still pay the full rent.

Landlords often insist on receiving one rent check for the entire rent -- they don't want to be bothered with multiple checks from contenants, even if each contenant pays on time and the checks add up to the full rent. As long as you have been advised of this policy in the rental agreement or lease, it's legal for your landlord to impose it.

When One Roommate Violates the Lease or Rental Agreement

A landlord can legally hold all contenants responsible for the negative actions of just one, and terminate everyone's tenancy with the appropriate notice. For example, two contenants can be evicted even if only one of them seriously damaged the property or otherwise violated the lease or rental agreement.

In practice, however, landlords sometimes ignore the legal rule that all tenants are equally liable for lease violations, and don't penalize a blameless one. If the non-offending roommates pay the rent on time, do not damage the landlord's property, and can differentiate themselves from the bad apple in the landlord's eyes, the landlord may want to keep them.

Disagreements Among Roommates

For all sorts of reasons, roommate arrangements regularly go awry. If you have shared an apartment or house, you know about roommates who play the stereo too loud, never wash a dish, pay their share of the rent late, have too many overnight guests, leave their gym clothes on the kitchen table, or otherwise drive you nuts. If the situation gets bad enough, you'll likely end up arguing with your roommates about who should leave.

	Can my roommate evict me?

However, as a general rule, you can't terminate your roommate's tenancy by filing an eviction action. Only if you have sublet a portion of your rental -- so that you become your roommate's (sublessee's) landlord -- can you control that roommate's tenancy.

Another exception involves rentals governed by rent control laws that allow a landlord to designate a "master tenant" -- usually a long-term tenant who was there first -- to perform many of the functions of a landlord (this is the rule in San Francisco). Master tenants have the right to choose -- as well as to evict -- tenants. If your municipality is subject to rent control, find out whether the scheme includes a provision for a master tenant.

Roommate Agreements

Roommates can make lots of informal agreements about splitting rent, occupying bedrooms, and sharing chores. Your landlord isn't bound by these agreements, and has no power to enforce them, but making an agreement can force you and your housemates to take your cotenancy responsibilities seriously.

Before you move in, sit down with your roommates and discuss major issues, such as:

1. Rent. What is everyone's share? Who will write the rent check if the landlord will accept only one check?
2. Space. Who will occupy which bedrooms?
3. Household chores. Who's responsible for cleaning, and on what schedule?
4. Food sharing. Will food, shopping, and cooking responsibilities be shared? How will you split the costs and work?
5. Noise. When should stereos or TVs be turned off or down low?
6. Overnight guests. Is it okay for boyfriends/girlfriends to stay over every night?
7. Moving out. If one of you decides to move, how much notice must be given? Must the departing tenant find an acceptable substitute?

The more you can anticipate possible problems from the start, the better prepared you'll be to handle disputes that do arise. Be as specific as possible, especially on issues that are important to you. If dirty dishes in the sink drive you up the wall, write it down. If occasional guests are no problem, but you can't stand the thought of your roommate's non-rent-paying boyfriend hogging the bathroom every morning, make sure your agreement is clear on guests.

It's best to put your understandings in writing. (See the sample roommate agreement below.) Oral agreements are too easily forgotten or misinterpreted. Most of the agreement won't be legally binding -- that is, a judge won't order a tenant to clean the bathroom. Judges will, however, enforce financial agreements, such as how you’ve agreed to share rent.

To underline the roommates' commitment, it's wise to include a clause requiring cotenants to participate in mediation before one of you breaks the agreement by moving out or running off to court. Our sample roommate agreement, below, includes such a clause. (For more on mediation, read the Go to Court or Mediate section of Nolo's website.)

When a Roommate Leaves

What to do if a roommate moves out before a lease ends.

A co-tenant in a month-to-month tenancy who wants to leave is legally responsible for giving the landlord proper written notice and paying rent through the end of the notice period. If there's a lease, the tenant should either get permission from the landlord to leave early or, if this is impossible, find a new tenant who is acceptable to the landlord. If a co-tenant simply leaves without the landlord's okay or without an acceptable substitute, the fallout can be serious.

What to Do If You Want to Stay

The unauthorized departure of a co-tenant gives the landlord the option of evicting the rest of you, even if you are able to pay the full rent. The landlord has this option because breaking the lease or rental agreement by even one tenant is a violation of a key lease term (the length of stay), for which all tenants are liable.

In practice, however, your landlord will probably let you stay if you can keep a steady stream of rent money coming in and keep the place occupied by stable, nondestructive tenants. So if you want to stay after a co-tenant has broken the lease and left, the landlord will probably not evict you and other tenants unless:

• you are a troublesome tenant, and this is a golden opportunity to be rid of you, or
• your income doesn't appear sufficient to cover the rent in the future. In this case, if you can assure the landlord that you can promptly bring in a good, law- and lease-abiding new co-tenant, you might be able to salvage your tenancy. In the meantime, you may need to ask permission to pay the rent late or in installments.

Always get your landlord's approval before moving in a new roommate. If a co-tenant takes off and leaves you facing the entire rent, you may be tempted to simply move in another roommate, bypassing the landlord's application process. Don't! Your lease or rental agreement probably prohibits unauthorized sublets. If it does, bringing in a new tenant -- even a great one -- without your landlord's okay violates your agreement and gives your landlord a watertight reason to evict you. Instead, keep your relationship on an honest footing and get your landlord's approval for a replacement tenant. (For more information, see Adding a Roommate to the Lease or Rental Agreement.)

How to Deal With a Departing Roommate

Remaining roommates need to cover their legal flanks with respect to the departed tenant as well as the landlord. If your housemate has left during the middle of a lease or without proper notice in a month-to-month tenancy, leaving you responsible for all the rent, your personal relations will be rocky at best. Probably the last thing you want is to have your errant roommate reappear expecting to move back in.

To avoid such surprises, try to get your former roommate to sign an agreement, making it clear that the departing tenant:

• Will pay a stated amount of rent and utilities. If you rent under a written rental agreement, this will normally be rent and utilities for 30 days from the date the departing tenant gave written notice (or left without notice), unless a new roommate comes in earlier and covers these costs. If you rent under a lease, the amount owed will depend on when a new co-tenant, acceptable to the landlord, is ready to take over. If, despite your best efforts, you cannot find an acceptable replacement, the departing tenant will be liable for the rent for the balance of the lease.
• Will pay for any damage she caused to the rental unit.
• Will pay for rent and damage no later than a stated date.
• Has moved out for good and gives up any claim to be a tenant.

But what if you and the departing roommate can't work things out, and the departed co-tenant shows no signs of paying? If your roommate is long gone or out-of-state, you may want to grit your teeth, pay his share and forget it, since trying to find him, sue him, and then collect the judgment is likely to be more trouble than it's worth.

On the other hand, if your ex-roommate is still in town and has a source of income, consider taking the time to sue him in small claims court for unpaid rent, damage to the rental unit, unpaid utilities, and your costs to find a replacement co-tenant, such as advertising. Then, if your ex-roommate still doesn't pay up, you can collect what you won in court from his bank account or wages. For more information, see the Small Claims Court section of Nolo's website.

What to Do If You Want to Move Out, Too

If your co-tenant skips out, leaving you in the lurch, you may decide that it's not worth the hassle of trying to stay and rustle up another roommate.

To ease your departure and forestall the landlord from keeping your security deposit to make up for unpaid rent, or listing you as a deadbeat at the credit bureau, follow these steps:

• If you are a month-to-month tenant, give the required amount of written notice (usually 30 days) immediately. Don't wait until you can't pay the next month's rent and receive a termination notice.
• If you have a lease, let the landlord know in writing that you plan to move because you cannot afford the rent without your co-tenant. Before you move, be extra accommodating when it comes to showing the unit to prospective renters. Facilitating a quick re-rental is not just a courtesy to your landlord, but to your advantage as well, since the sooner a new tenant takes over, the sooner your liability for the balance of the rent due under the lease ends. In addition, do your best to find an acceptable replacement tenant yourself.

Adding a Roommate to the Lease or Rental Agreement

Get your landlord's approval before a new person moves in.

Whether it's time to live with the one you love or you just need to replace a departing roommate, check with your landlord before letting a new person move in. Most landlords will insist that the new roommate become a co-tenant, having the same rights and responsibilities as you do.

Getting the Landlord's Approval

Obviously, you want to be sure that your new roommate is financially stable and compatible with you.

But even if you are satisfied with your intended co-tenant's stellar qualifications, it doesn't mean the landlord will take your word for it. To increase your chances of getting an official okay, consider these questions before approaching the landlord:

• Will adding a roommate exceed the occupancy limit? Landlords are entitled to set reasonable limits on the number of occupants per rental unit. As a general rule, that's two persons per bedroom plus one more, though some localities (such as New York City) allow more.
• Will the new roommate meet your landlord's good-tenant criteria? Many landlords subject prospective tenants to a thorough screening process, checking credit, employment, rental history, and references. Ask your prospective roommates to request a credit report on themselves. If the credit report is good, you'll want to hand it to the landlord with your proposed new tenant's application. Since the landlord will almost surely do this as well, doing it first gives you the opportunity to develop a plausible explanation for any negative information -- for example, a prior eviction or bankruptcy.

Unless you are on fairly close personal terms with your landlord, it's usually a good idea to write your landlord a note about your desire to add a roommate. This gives the landlord an unpressured opportunity to think about it. It is also your chance to sell your proposal by pointing out that your rental is big enough for another tenant and, assuming you already have someone lined up, that your new roommate will be a great tenant.

McKinney-Vento Reauthorization

On April 2, U.S. House and Senate introduced the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act (or HEARTH Act)—a bill to reauthorize HUD's McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance programs. The Senate bill (S. 808) was introduced by Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Kit Bond (R-MO), and 11 other Senators. The House bill (H.R. 1877) was introduced by Representatives Gwen Moore (D-WI), Judy Biggert (R-IL), and 5 other House Members. The House and Senate bills are nearly identical to a version that passed the House last year, which itself was a compromise between a bill that passed the House Financial Services Committee in July 2008, and one that passed the Senate Banking Committee in September 2007.

The HEARTH Act will provide communities with new resources and better tools to prevent and end homelessness. The bill:

• Increases priority on homeless families with children, by providing new resources for rapid re-housing programs, designating funding to permanently house families, and ensuring that families are included in the chronic homelessness initiative.
• Significantly increases resources to prevent homelessness for people who are at risk of homelessness, doubled up, living in hotels, or in other precarious housing situations through the Emergency Solutions Grant program.
• Continues to provide incentives for developing permanent supportive housing and provides dedicated funding for permanent housing renewals.
• Grants rural communities greater flexibility in utilizing McKinney funds.
• Modestly expands the definition of homelessness to include people who are losing their housing in the next 14 days and who lack resources or support networks to obtain housing, as well as families and youth who are persistently unstable and lack independent housing and will continue to do so.

Latest News:
On May 19, both houses passed S. 896, the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, which included the HEARTH Act as an amendment. President Obama signed the legislation into law on May 20. Click here to watch the Signing Ceremony.

Do you rent? Do you know your rights and how you can protect them?

 Ten Tips for Tenants

Know your rights when you rent a house or apartment.

1. Bring your paperwork.
The best way to win over a prospective landlord is to be prepared. To get a competitive edge over other applicants, bring the following when you meet the landlord: a completed rental application; written references from landlords, employers, and colleagues; and a current copy of your credit report.

2. Review the lease.
Carefully review all of the conditions of the tenancy before you sign on the dotted line. Your lease or rental agreement may contain a provision that you find unacceptable -- for example, restrictions on guests, pets, design alterations, or running a home business. For help reviewing your lease or rental agreement, see Signing a Lease or Rental Agreement FAQ.

3. Get everything in writing.
To avoid disputes or misunderstandings with your landlord, get everything in writing. Keep copies of any correspondence and follow up an oral agreement with a letter, setting out your understandings. For example, if you ask your landlord to make repairs, put your request in writing and keep a copy for yourself. If the landlord agrees orally, send a letter confirming this.

4. Protect your privacy rights.
Next to disputes over rent or security deposits, one of the most common and emotion-filled misunderstandings arises over the tension between a landlord's right to enter a rental unit and a tenant's right to be left alone. If you understand your privacy rights (for example, the amount of notice your landlord must provide before entering), it will be easier to protect them. For more information, see Tenants' Rights to Privacy and Repairs FAQ.

5. Demand repairs.
Know your rights to live in a habitable rental unit -- and don't give them up. The vast majority of landlords are required to offer their tenants livable premises, including adequate weatherproofing; heat, water, and electricity; and clean, sanitary, and structurally safe premises. If your rental unit is not kept in good repair, you have a number of options, ranging from withholding a portion of the rent, to paying for repairs and deducting the cost from your rent, to calling the building inspector (who may order the landlord to make repairs), to moving out without liability for your future rent. For more information, see the article Renters' Rights to Minor Repairs

6. Talk to your landlord.
Keep communication open with your landlord. If there's a problem -- for example, if the landlord is slow to make repairs -- talk it over to see if the issue can be resolved short of a nasty legal battle. Resolving Landlord-Tenant Disputes FAQ provides some advice.

7. Purchase renters' insurance.
Your landlord's insurance policy will not cover your losses due to theft or damage. Renters' insurance also covers you if you're sued by someone who claims to have been injured in your rental due to your carelessness. Renters' insurance typically costs $350 a year for a $50,000 policy that covers loss due to theft or damage caused by other people or natural disasters; if you don't need that much coverage, there are cheaper policies. For more information about renters' insurance, see the article Renters: Protect Yourself From Crime.

8. Protect your security deposit.
To protect yourself and avoid any misunderstandings, make sure your lease or rental agreement is clear on the use and refund of security deposits, including allowable deductions. When you move in, do a walk-through with the landlord to record existing damage to the premises on a move-in statement or checklist. For more information, see the article Protect Your Security Deposit When You Move In.

9. Protect your safety.
Learn whether your building and neighborhood are safe, and what you can expect your landlord to do about it if they aren't. Get copies of any state or local laws that require safety devices such as deadbolts and window locks, check out the property's vulnerability to intrusion by a criminal, and learn whether criminal incidents have already occurred on the property or nearby. If a crime is highly likely, your landlord may be obligated to take some steps to protect you. For more information on this subject, see the article Renters: Protect Yourself From Crime.

10. Deal with an eviction properly.
Know when to fight an eviction notice -- and when to move. If you feel the landlord is clearly is the wrong (for example, you haven't received proper notice, the premises are uninhabitable), you may want to fight the eviction. But unless you have the law and provable facts on your side, fighting an eviction notice can be short-sighted. If you lose an eviction lawsuit, you may end up hundreds (even thousands) of dollars in debt, which will damage your credit rating and your ability to easily rent from future landlords.

How Evictions Work: What Renters Need to Know

Landlords can't just lock you out, even if you are behind on rent. They must get a court judgment first.

Your landlord can't evict you without terminating the tenancy first. This usually means giving you adequate written notice, in a specified way and form. If you don't move after proper notice (or reform your ways -- for example, by paying the rent or finding a new home for the dog), the landlord can file a lawsuit to evict you. (This type of lawsuit is sometimes called an unlawful detainer, or UD lawsuit.) In order to win, the landlord must prove that you did something wrong that justifies ending the tenancy.

State laws have very detailed requirements for landlords who want to end a tenancy. Each state has its own procedures as to how termination notices and eviction papers must be written and delivered to you ("served"). Landlords must follow state rules and procedures exactly.

Notice of Termination for Cause

Although terminology varies somewhat from state to state, there are basically three types of termination notices that you might receive if you have violated the rental agreement or lease in some way:

• Pay Rent or Quit Notices are typically given to you when you have not paid the rent. These notices give you a few days (three to five in most states) to pay the rent or move out ("quit").
• Cure or Quit Notices are typically given to you if you violate a term or condition of the lease or rental agreement, such as a no-pets clause or the promise to refrain from making excessive noise. Usually, you have a set amount of time in which to correct, or "cure," the violation.
• Unconditional Quit Notices are the harshest of all. They order you to vacate the premises with no chance to pay the rent or correct a lease or rental agreement violation. In most states, unconditional quit notices are allowed only if you have:
  • repeatedly violated a significant lease or rental agreement clause
  • been late with the rent on more than one occasion
  • seriously damaged the premises, or
  • engaged in serious illegal activity, such as drug dealing on the premises.

Notice of Termination Without Cause

Even if you have not violated the rental agreement and have not been late paying rent, a landlord can usually ask you to move out at any time (assuming you don't have a fixed term lease) as long as the landlord gives you a longer notice period.

	Can our landlord kick us out so a family member can move in?

A 30-Day Notice to Vacate or a 60-Day Notice to Vacate to terminate a tenancy can be used in most states when the landlord does not have a reason to end the tenancy. (The length of the required notice can be slightly longer or shorter in some states.)

Rent Control Exceptions. Many rent control cities, however, go beyond state laws and require the landlord to prove a legally recognized reason for termination. These laws are known as "just cause eviction protection." (Tenants in only a couple of states -- New Jersey and New Hampshire -- also enjoy just cause eviction protection.)

Eviction Lawsuit

Following receipt of a termination notice, if you haven't moved out or fixed the lease or rental agreement violation, the landlord must properly serve you with a summons and complaint for eviction in order to proceed with the eviction.

Possible Defenses

If you do get hauled into court, you may be able to diminish the landlord's chances of victory. Perhaps you can point to shoddy paperwork in the preparation of the eviction lawsuit. Or maybe the landlord's illegal behavior, such as not maintaining the rental property in habitable condition, will serve as a good defense, as would a claim that the eviction lawsuit is in retaliation for your insistence on needed, major repairs.

Sheriff's Escort

Even if the landlord wins the eviction lawsuit, the landlord can't just move you and your things out onto the sidewalk. Landlords must give the court judgment to a local law enforcement office, along with a fee. A sheriff or marshal gives you a notice that the officer will be back within a few days to escort you off the property. At that point, it's best to acknowledge defeat and leave on your own steam.

Renters in Foreclosure: What Are Their Rights?

by Attorney Janet Portman

The sub-prime mortgage industry meltdown is now affecting renters whose landlords have lost their rental properties through foreclosure.

The mortgage industry crisis that started in 2006 has resulted in thousands -- no, make that millions -- of foreclosed homes. Most of the occupants are the homeowners themselves, who must scramble to find alternate housing with very little notice. They’re being joined by scores of renters who discover, often with no warning, that their rented house or apartment is now owned by a bank, which wants them out in a matter of days. For most of these renters, their options are bleak.

Who Are the Renters?

Renters who lose their homes to foreclosures don’t fit a single profile. Many of them live in smaller buildings, condos, and single-family homes. They’re located in cities and surrounding suburbs, in low-income and upscale neighborhoods. In short, foreclosed homes are everywhere, and they're rented by people with widely varying incomes, including some with “Section 8” (federal housing assistance) vouchers.

Who Are the Defaulting Owners?

The typical foreclosed home may have originally been owner-occupied, but more often it’s owned by investors and speculators who were hoping to profit from the rents. During the heyday of sub-prime mortgages -- when practically anyone who breathed and could sign their name could get a loan, usually with an adjustable rate -- these owners easily bought-up rental properties. They counted on rising rents and low interest rates to cover their mortgage payments. Caught between the slump in housing values and the rise of their mortgage interest rates, these owners could not feasibly sell nor extract enough rent to cover their monthly costs. In droves, they lost their investments. For example, in Minneapolis and its surrounding suburbs, 38% of the 2006 foreclosures involved rental properties; in Minneapolis alone, 65% were rentals.

Who Are the New Landlords?

When an owner defaults on a mortgage, the mortgage holder, often a bank, either becomes the new owner or sells the property at a public sale. If the bank becomes the owner, it may pay a servicing company to handle the property. But don't expect close attention -- these companies are focused on financial matters, not mundane things like maintenance.

Some renters find themselves with a new owner even before the foreclosure. Lawyers in Massachusetts, for example, contend that many new rental property owners are investment trusts that specialize in purchasing troubled loans directly from banks, then foreclosing, evicting, and selling.

Renters in Foreclosed Properties Lose Their Leases

Most renters will lose their leases upon foreclosure. The rule in most states is that if the mortgage was recorded before the lease was signed, a foreclosure will wipe out the lease (this rule is known as “first in time, first in right”). Because most leases last no longer than a year, it's all too common for the mortgage to predate the lease and destroy it upon foreclosure.

That doesn't always mean the lease-holding tenants have to leave immediately -- but those who remain join the ranks of month-to–month renters, all of whom can be terminated with proper notice, usually 30 days. And the new owners tend to move quickly to terminate, giving as little notice as is legally possible (sometimes no more than three days).

Tenants who refuse to leave face an eviction lawsuit, for which they usually have no legal defense. The impact of an eviction on a tenant's ability to find future housing can be devastating. No law prevents a future landlord from automatically rejecting tenants with evictions on their record, even when those tenants were the innocent victims of a foreclosing bank.

There are some notable exceptions, however, to this grim scenario. Tenants who participate in the federally financed Section 8 program will see their leases survive, as will tenants in New Jersey, New Hampshire, the District of Columbia, and, as of the end of November 2007, Massachusetts. In these states, new owners cannot evict lease-holding tenants unless the tenants have failed to pay the rent or violated any other important lease term or law. Tenants in other states who live in cities with rent control “just cause” eviction protection may also be protected.

Does It Make Sense to Evict Tenants?

New owners evict existing tenants because they believe that vacant properties are easier to sell. Common sense suggests otherwise. In many situations a building full of stable, rent-paying tenants will be more valuable (and command a higher price) than an empty building. Emptied buildings are also prone to vandalism and other deterioration – after all, no one is on site to monitor their condition. When entire neighborhoods become a wasteland of empty foreclosed multifamily buildings, their value drops even further. It’s hard to understand why new owners choose to pay lawyers to start eviction procedures instead of paying a modest fee to a management company to collect rent and manage the property while they wait to sell.

What Can a Foreclosed-Upon Tenant Do?

Renters whose states follow the “first in time, first in right” rule, where a lease can be wiped out by a foreclosure if the mortgage was recorded before the lease, will not be able to convince a court to change that rule. But tenants who learn that their new landlord is a bank can at least lessen the financial consequences by suing the former owner. Here’s how it works.

After signing a lease, the landlord is legally bound to deliver the rental for the entire lease term. In legalese, this duty is known as the “covenant of quiet enjoyment.” A landlord who defaults on a mortgage, which sets in motion the loss of the lease, violates this covenant, and the tenant can sue for the damages it causes.

Small claims court is a perfect place to bring such a lawsuit. The tenant can sue for moving and apartment-searching costs, application fees, and the difference, if any, between the new rent for a comparable rental and the rent under the old lease. Though the former owner is probably not flush with money, these cases won’t demand very much, and the judgment and award will stay on the books for many years. A persistent tenant can probably collect what's owed eventually.

Press for Legislative Reforms

Why should hapless tenants suffer the consequences of risky lending practices engaged in by others? States besides those mentioned above can enact legislation to protect tenants. On the federal level, some action is already under way. HR 3915, The Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act of 2007, would not only tighten up the mortgage industry, but provide that tenants’ leases would survive foreclosure, and that month-to-month tenants would be entitled to 90 days’ termination notice.

I am about to lose my house if i dont come up with $2180 in 30 days. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks and God Bless

I really don't know where to begin or if anyone will really see this but I am doing this as my last cry for help. I am a single mother of three, 16, 14, 12. I am a full time worker but due to the mortgage increase and the economy going bad all my bills have increase. I am also at risk for losing my home. I had orthoscopic surgery last year and I am also flooded with medical bills. I am unable to put food on my table and have started encouraging my kids to eat all they can at school. My son recently got in touble for eating lunch when it wasn't his lunch period and the school has placed him on probation because he has done it more than once.

 I have borrowed so mych from friends that I can no longer ask them for help and I have no family to turn to. I need help and I need it desparately. I am becoming depressed and I don't want this situation to take my livelihood. I am a very independent person and I really tried to fix my problem on my owm but now it is way out of hand and I cannot maintain any sense of security for my children. There are time that I will not eat so my children will have food to eat and I go to work and my coworkers will offer me food to eat, not because they know my situation but because they are kind.

I don't know who reads this but if you are reading this and you can help, please help. This is not a joke and I hope this site isn't either.

Hello.

My name is Kimberly Koch. I am a mother of 4 children. My husband and I have a 9 month old, a 3 year old, a 7 year old and a 15 year old. We live in Moorpark CA. In January 2009, my husband was laid off when his employer (Teledyene) laid off a bunch of people out of economic necessity. My husband has a PhD in Physics from UCLA and 8 years of industry experience.He has been applying to both industry and academic positions every day since he has been laid off. Every day. We have received so many rejection letters it is becoming very disheartening. My husband is very smart and has an extremelly good work ethic.He has a awesome education and a very postive employment history, so when I tell you that it's no fault of his that he hasn't been hired yet, it's true. We have lost our home to foreclosure, had our one car respossed, and finally were forced to file Ch7 bankruptcy. We tried to file for Ch 11 but the judge delcared that we did not have enough incoming money to pay the monthly CH 11 payment (if you know about CH 11 bankruptcy then you know that it doesn't wipe everything clean, instead, you are told how much to pay to the trustee on a monthly basis). So, we now are living with my Mom and Step Dad in their house. Counting all of us, there are a total of 8 people in their house now (all my family and my mom and step dad). It's chaotic. Yes, we are lucky to be able to lean on them on our time of need but we have been living with them ever since we lost our home which is about a year and a half ago. My husband was working 3 jobs (one full time job at Northrop Grumman and 2  temporary part time teaching jobs at community colleges). When the 2 temporary jobs finally ended (the budget at the community colleges were cut so they could no longer keep him on) all heck broke loose financially. We toyed with the idea of me going back to work, but with his education he brings in more money per hour than I ever could with my Biology degree so we decided that even though it was very stressful for all, he would find side work to keep us afloat and when he finally did, Northrop told him that they were unaware he was moonlighting and it is against company policy to do so which forced him to give up the side job in order to keep the full time job and not irritate managment at Northrop. So you can see why we finally lost the house, lost the car and filed for bankruptcy. We just could not do it, every which way we tried. We cut all expenses that could be cut and I mean all. So, here we are. Struggling to make it on a daily basis. Every week we run out of money and run out of gas. We need help. From the most desperate place in our hearts, it's just time for us to ask anyone and everyone for help. So, that's what I'm doing here. We do have food stamps, but not enough to get us through even 2 weeks with 6 people in my family to feed (we prepare our own food and my mom prepares food for her and my step dad and we have learned how to keep our food seperate, as tacky as that might sound, just to aviod any kind of turmoil that may come from us using eachothers food. My mom does not have enough money to help us out any other way than letting us stay in her home, which is enough of a sacrifice if you ask me. My mom and step dad are newly retired so income is tight for them as it is. Please help any way you possibly can. We have contacted any kind of resource available to us in Moorpark, like Community Action Agency and there resources are already being used by people already signed up with the agency so come my turn to go there what is available is usually only a bag or two of groceries. We have 4 sets of growing feet we need to put shoes on and four growing bodies we need to get clothing for and food for. I ask for assistance, this is my call for help. Please, contact me if you think you might be able to do so.

I am a single 45 year old man. I am struggling to hold on to my family home which has been in the family since 1964. I had a very good job up intil 2005 when I was laid off. I bout the home from my parents back in 1997. They lived with me and I took care of them until they died. I am very underemployed. I can not find work in my field and am forced to take work at 25% of what I used to make. I am 6 months late on mortgage payments and I can barely keep up with utilities and medical needs. I have depression and anxiety, a spinal disorder, a heart condition and chronic pain. I do not know what I am going to do. i need help.

I have only 18 hours to come up with $600 for the rent on my 3br home. its snowing, i dont know if I can send my kids to school tomarrow or if i will have to drag them with me in my last deprate attempt to stop the forclosure on my house. My older daughter's 6th  birthday is saturday, im not going to be able to give her anything. And now im afraid im going to have tell her that her puppy has to go to the animal shelter..... 

Its so sad how many people are in the same boat, or worse. blessing to all of you out there who dont know where your going to be sleeping next week. 

I am new to this, and I really don't know where to start, but here it goes. My family is in some serious financial trouble and we are definately in over our heads. Let me start by telling everyone a little about myself and my family. I am 32 years old and come from a wonderful upbringing. My parents were divorced when I was too young to remember, but I had a very stable upbringing. I tried to go to college after high school but could not stay focused. My fiance and I decided to move from AZ to PA, where we had family. His mother was sick and he wanted to be near her. We both were able to get jobs and get all of our debt paid off while we lived with his parents. We moved out out on our own, got married and started to get in too deep. The house we were renting became too much to afford and they did not renew our lease. We moved in with my grandmother and that lasted all of 1 month until we found an apartment. We were heading in the right direction, and then I got pregnant. Our son was born in Oct 2002, and everything was great. Our landlord told us that we would have to move when our son started walking (we lived upstairs from her), so we decided to look into buying a house. We found a house we loved and the mortgage payments were only a little more than our rent, so we did it. We moved in exactly one month before our son turned one. Everything was good for a few months, then we started to get a little behind. We got caught back up and then my husband lost his job. He was making almost 15.00/hr and his unemployment was about half of that. To make matters worse, our car died, and our credit was not in the best condition to buy a new one. We were able to find someone to finance us, but at an astronomical rate. Then I got pregnant again. Our daughter was born in Dec 2006 and things just started snowballing from there. My husband took a job in June 2006, making 10.00/hr and is only making 11.50/hr now. I work as a Medical Assistant at an office that is on the verge of bankrupcy. Our mortgage payments (that are now 786.00 month because they are trying to catch us up) is behind again, and they want money by Friday (10/31) or they are going to start the forclosure process, and to top it all off, our furnance is broke and it is 38 degrees outside and snowing. We are heating our house with space heaters, so that are kids stay warm. I have to decide whether to pay the mortgage payment this week or fix the furnace. Our car also is almost 4 month overdue for inspection and needs breaks terribly. What to fix first???

I am tired of robbing Peter to pay Paul, because Peter has no more money to rob! My family does not have the money to loan me and my husbands dad moved away after his mom passed away 5 years ago. We hardly see him anymore (maybe twice a year) and he has helped us out before, so it is hard to ask again. 

I have contacted assistance agencies with no avail. We make a little too much to qualify!

If any one has any suggestions or can help out in any way...it would definately not go unappreciated. I believe in paying it forward...and I know that someday my troubles will be gone and in their place will be someone else's and hopefully I will be able to lend a hellping hand (or a helping dollar).

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts and may god bless your generosity!

A.C

paypal address: aimco122@msn.com

Well this is my first post.And i forewarn you it will be long. just posting past history too, It is what got us into what we are in now, I found this page when looking for help in Ohio.

For the past 3 years my husband and i have been able to keep afloat., Its been stressful but we have done it. Just a few years ago when my sons lead test can back at 32, We tried to get help trough the state in removing lead from our home. Yes we new when we bought it, it was a older home and they said it had lead. No one told us the damage lead could cause in a child or for a family. The state health department couldn't offer any help but giving us deadlines to get this removed, and Noe we were told we couldn't do it by ourselves, well we did.. we couldn't afford 10,000 + dollars to have someone remove it or even more for someone to come paint it with a certain paint. Our son now has issues, they say he has aspergers a high functioning autism. 

  Life was going better and my husband and i got pregnant. I had a very rough pregnancy. I was suppose to be on bed rest over 1/2 of it but my husband was laid off in feb. And we were going on unemployment (not much) and my 48(min) hours a week. well i fought with the dr about this and won telling him I had more stress not working, was admitted to the hospital over 3 times. well may 12 our little boy was boy very healthy. at 7 15lbs. the hospital scared us when leaving they didn't think he would make it past the first weekend because he was droping weight we had a home nurse come and show us how to force feed him every 2-4 hours 3-4 oz to make him gain the weight back. @ months in we was the same weight as other babies his age...so we get over that block in our path then, I notice a trend going on in my job. All older employees there were being fired.... I watched all my co workers leave, I confronted my boss the owner one night on the phone telling him I see a pattern and I am next. All he did was laugh at me telling me that I was crazy. I would be labeled #9. that everyone being paid 10 or over and full time with benefits were being let go, i was 9 and I know who is next. But he was on med leave when I was let go. sure enough the next day I was told there was a man. full staff meeting. I text another employee to see if she heard it yet, to see if they were firing me like they did a few others, a set up meeting not a full staff. Well their was a meeting. BUT i got fired for asking another employee told i was gossiping...

Now here I sit because i was on leave when pregnant and 12 weeks after and my husband laid off feb-june. We are being foreclosed on. Never in our lives did we think this would happen.We just don't know where to turn from here. My aunt has a place we can move into because she is disabled and ha to move to another state to be looked after by her sister and her family. But the shape the house is in. it needs soo much tlc. while i was working we saw we were loosing out home, so we did working my aunts house Ive spent over $500. in just dumpsters, and have to get a HUGE one for 495. next coons put a hole in the roof and destroyed everything upstairs.  and now with it being like that for so long and all the rain we have to do a new roof.  and we need to figure out how to get the smell out of the house we have tried everything, also water leak in basement so we have musty smell there.

I'm in dire need of help so if there is anyone in Ohio that knows about roofing or anything else that could help us out please let me know.I don't know how much longer we will be in our home, I know we cant move into my aunts with our children in the shape it is in right now, Also checking into habitat for humanity too.. I have no problem with work min 48 hours a week and i had worked 10 days 12 hour shifts right before i was let go. was suppose to work 13, 12 hour shifts in a row, off 1 day then back for 6 more. Because of the firing they did a week before.  

Wow... where to start. My husband has been in construction his entire life. He has recently (September) closed down his construction business. He is now working in a sales position and not making any money. We have recently lost our house to forclosure and our vehicles to the bank. Our rent is due in 14 days and I am not sure where that is going to come from. We have never been in a situation like this and I just spend all day crying. I cant imagine the thought of having to live on the streets with my 2 year old twins. It just kills me inside to think about the life that they are living already. I would appreciate any help or advice!!!