More On Foreclosures Forcing Tenants From Homes; Section 8 Tenant Rights Being Violated

Recent stories on the problems facing tenants as a result of their landlords being foreclosed on:

Minnesota - Minneapolis Star Tribune - Wave of foreclosures hits renters (When landlords face foreclosures, tenants often lose their housing. Rights and leases can extend for months after a sale, but many families are scrambling and some are finding themselves homeless).

Massachusetts - Boston Herald - Foreclosures hit tenants (Activists: New owners trample on renters’ rights). Activists are warning about “cash for keys” and other schemes designed to trick Section 8 subsidized housing tenants into moving out of homes recently sold at foreclosure auctions. Under federal law, Section 8 tenants with proper leases can’t be immediately tossed out of their units because of a change in ownership, experts say. “Federal laws trump state laws, so (Section 8 tenants) can stay,” said Rafael Mares, an attorney at Harvard Law School’s WilmerHale Legal Services, which is helping tenants during the current foreclosure crisis. Even if a tenant’s Section 8 lease has expired, federal law requires that property owners must prove they’re being economically harmed by having a tenant remain in a building, said Mares.

For other stories on tenants unknowingly renting homes in foreclosure, go here, or here, or here. equity skimming unwittingly delta harvard legal aid bureau