Last Minute Legal Aid Help Thwarts Real Estate Agent's Attempt To Illegally Boot Tenants From Recently Foreclosed Home

In New Haven, Connecticut, the New Haven Independent reports on a Bridgeport-based real estate agent who, on behalf of a mortgage lender, attempted to force the tenants out of a foreclosed house in violation of the recently enacted Protecting Tenants At Foreclosure Act,(1) which, among other things, requires lenders to respect any existing tenant leases, and provide at least 90 days notice when vacating month-to-month renters. In fear of getting the boot, the tenants were referred to a local legal aid lawyer, who put a stop to the failed eviction scam.

• [Local legal aid attorney Amy] Marx — who has found ways to help other tenants stay in foreclosed-upon homes — blasted the realtor and OneWest for “a shockingly flagrant violation” of the new law. Foreclosers are entitled to offer cash-for-keys deals, she said. But not to present them as the only option. It has to happen “only in the context of an honest conversation of what the tenants’ options are,” Marx said.

• Marx said she’s confident the law will protect them in the meantime. She worries about other tenants who don’t have City Hall relatives to steer them to legal-aid lawyers. “Miss Walters is extremely lucky. She knew someone who knew someone” who knew someone else who could help, Marx observed. “What we are really worried about are the countless tenants out there who do not know about the law and will not get the chance to fight back against the bank the way Miss Walters is now doing.”

For the story, see Foreclosure Law Has Her Back.

(1) This federal foreclosure law was passed this spring and requires (with one exception not applicable here) property owners who come into land through foreclosure to honor all existing leases, and to provide a 90-day window for any month-to-month tenants. See Section 702(a)(2) of the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act of 2009. RentSigmaSkimming