NY AG Obtains Court Order Halting Illegal Rome Evictions

From the New York Attorney General's Office:

• Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo [last Thursday] announced his office has obtained a state court order to stop the owner of Rome’s Maplewood Garden Apartments from wrongfully evicting tenants with valid leases. His office is also seeking penalties against the company and investigating the landlord’s failure to keep proper records of the tenants’ security deposits.

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• The Attorney General’s Office conducted an investigation confirming the [illegal eviction] notices. It is also seeking a $500 fine for each attempt to break a lease. That fine – plus the recovery of $2,000 in costs to the state – could result in at least a $12,000 penalty for MHS. The investigation also revealed that MHS may not have established a trust account for tenants’ security deposits or kept sufficient records of those funds, as required by law.

• Attorney General Cuomo urges all tenants to know their rights with regard to rent, leases and other housing issues. His office’s Tenant’s Rights Guide is available online at http://www.oag.state.ny.us/bureaus/real_estate_finance/
  pdfs/tenants_rights_guide.pdf

For more, see Attorney General Cuomo Protects Rome Apartment Complex Tenants From Wrongful Eviction (Obtains order to stop eviction notices and seeks fines).