KVCR has met with several community organizations that have been engaged in helping tenants stay in their homes, despite the home being repossessed by a bank and subsequently sold at auction. According to news reports, fully one-third of foreclosures have tenant occupants at the time of default. The vast majority of these tenants are fully paid-up on their leases or rental payments. Yet these are the people whom the sheriff forces to the street with a 24-hour evict notice once the home has transferred ownership.
The California-wide organization, Tenants Together, advocates for tenant rights and has met with KVCR to discuss this growing problem. They have a Los Angeles chapter that helps people in the greater SoCal area.
Another organization, the Inland Empire Latino Lawyers Association, helps the Spanish-speaking community in San Bernardino and Riverside counties negotiate with the banks to allow the tenant occupants to retain their lease throughout the bank repossession process. This segment of our community often finds it difficult to negotiate with banks who, in some cases, would be happy to have the tenant income.
Look for a forthcoming post with links and contact information for these associations.
Fri, Jun 19, 2009
Facts & Info, Tenant Evictions