Today's Date: March 29, 2024
Re:wild and Colossal Biosciences team up to leverage revolutionary technology to save critically endangered species on the brink   •   YMCA of the USA Partners With Old Spice To Increase High School Graduation Among Boys And Young Men Of Color Through Mentorship   •   Anaergia Announces Delay in the Filing of Its Audited Financial Statements and Related Disclosures   •   Parkland Corporation Announces the Results of the 2024 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders   •   Suffolk Kicks off 2024 “Build With Us @ Suffolk” Program in Boston for Trade Partners, Opening Doors for Minority-,   •   Anaergia Announces Escrow Closing of Second Tranche of the Strategic Investment   •   Amerex Group Unveils Red Carter Swimwear's Revitalized Collection   •   Taro Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. Expands OTC Portfolio for Children with the Introduction of bébé Bottoms™   •   Empire State Realty Trust Receives WELL Health-Safety Leadership Award; Becomes Among the First Commercial Office and Multifamil   •   Carnegie Learning Named 2024 SIIA CODiE Award Finalist for Best Educational Game and Best AI Implementation in Ed Tech   •   Equalpride Partners with TransLash Media for Trans Day of Visibility, Amplifying Voices of Black Trans Femmes in the Arts   •   Midea Group releases its first-ever ESG brand story with an unexpected VIP visit highlighting its commitment to sustainability.   •   Visit Visalia Recognizes Autism Awareness Month in April   •   Make-A-Wish and celebrity wish granters announce goal to recruit 1 million people to become "WishMakers"   •   Sypher Secures Strategic Partnership with FAIA to Fuel Growth   •   Jamieson Wellness Publishes Inaugural Sustainability Impact Report   •   VIRGIN HOTELS CHAMPIONS INCLUSIVE TRAVEL FOR NEURODIVERSE TRAVELERS   •   Coachella Concerned That People Have Sex, Says AHF   •   National University Receives 2024 Military Friendly® Gold Designation   •   Fosun Management on 2023 Annual Results: Focusing on Core Industries with Established Advantages
Bookmark and Share

NLIHC Report Released: Renters in Foreclosed Properties May Face Homelessness

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 25, 2009

Contact: Taylor Materio 202-662-1530 x227; taylor@nlihc.org

 

Report Released: Renters in Foreclosed Properties May Face Homelessness 

 

WASHINGTON, DC – Foreclosures are driving an increase in homelessness across the country, according to a new report by the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) and the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty (NLCHP), and with pro bono assistance from the law firm of WilmerHale.

 

Renters of foreclosed properties are among those most at risk of homelessness, but their plight has received little attention. Without Just Cause outlines the rights, and lack thereof, for renters in foreclosure in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

About 40% of families facing eviction due to foreclosure are renters whose landlords have defaulted on their mortgages, and these renters have little protection. If a landlord is foreclosed upon, tenants who have diligently paid their rent on time may face eviction without notice, coming home to find locks changed and their belongings on the street. Some local sheriffs, such as Sheriff Tom Dart of Cook County, IL, made headlines for refusing to evict renters in these cases.

 

The status of renters in foreclosure cases is a matter of state law, and laws are complex and vary among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. In practice, there are often even fewer protections: even if they have rights, many renters are often unaware of them, and few have easy access to lawyers, who may also be unaware of tenants’ rights.

 

Major findings of this report show:

  • Only 33% of states (17 states) require any type of notice to tenants.

  • Only 29% of states (14 and DC) require a judicial process for foreclosure.

  • In several states (e.g. FL, IO, WI, NY, OH) tenants may remain only if they are not named in the foreclosure proceeding.

  • Only 2% of states (NJ and DC) explicitly preserve tenants’ rights in the lease after foreclosure.

 

Only 23 states provide some exceptions that may preserve tenants’ rights.  For example: 

  • In Connecticut, tenants who are elderly, disabled, or receive federal housing subsidies (“Section 8”) are protected and their tenancies preserved.

  • In Illinois, if tenants are not named in the foreclosure proceedings, they can maintain their lease, subject to the filing of a “supplemental petition” by the lender.

  • In nine states, the lease may be protected if it predated the mortgage, depending on mortgage terms.

 

“This lack of protection for law abiding renters can result in families losing their homes, children changing schools, and communities being destabilized unnecessarily,” said Danilo Pelletiere, NLIHC Research Director. “Renter protections are important to stopping the cycle of decline.”

In response, NLIHC has called on Congress and the Administration to provide:

  • $10 billion for the National Housing Trust Fund over 2009-2010 to rehabilitate or build 100,000 rental homes for the lowest income households using green standards.

  • $2 billion in Emergency Shelter Grants, for homelessness prevention and housing assistance to prevent low income renter households from becoming homeless, and to rapidly re-house those that do lose their homes; 400,000 households would be assisted.  

  • 400,000 new housing vouchers over 2009-2010, which would assist another 4000,000 low income families afford modest rental housing in what is likely to be a tightening market.

  • Legal protections for tenants in properties subject to foreclosure, including the requirement that existing leases and contracts be honored by new owners and in the absence of a lease, renters be provided with at least 90 days’ notice before eviction. 

“Roughly 40% of the families facing eviction are renters and in some cases they receive as little as one week between foreclosure and eviction. These families have limited time and limited resources to find new housing, and without action, an increase in homelessness is imminent,” said NLIHC President Sheila Crowley. “Congress and the Administration must take the needs of those suffering the most in this recession into consideration.”

 

The report Without Just Cause can be found at: http://www.nlchp.org/view_report.cfm?id=293

 

The National Low Income Housing Coalition is dedicated solely to ending America’s affordable housing crisis. Established in 1974 by Cushing N. Dolbeare, NLIHC educates, organizes and advocates to ensure decent, affordable housing within healthy neighborhoods for everyone. NLIHC provides up-to-date information, formulates policy and educates the public on housing needs and the strategies for solutions.

 

 

###

 

National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC)

727 15th Street NW
, 6th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20005
202/662-1530; Fax 202/393-1973; info@nlihc.org; www.nlihc.org
©2009 National Low Income Housing Coalition.

 



Back to top
| Back to home page
Video

White House Live Stream
LIVE VIDEO EVERY SATURDAY
alsharpton Rev. Al Sharpton
9 to 11 am EST
jjackson Rev. Jesse Jackson
10 to noon CST


Video

LIVE BROADCASTS
Sounds Make the News ®
WAOK-Urban
Atlanta - WAOK-Urban
KPFA-Progressive
Berkley / San Francisco - KPFA-Progressive
WVON-Urban
Chicago - WVON-Urban
KJLH - Urban
Los Angeles - KJLH - Urban
WKDM-Mandarin Chinese
New York - WKDM-Mandarin Chinese
WADO-Spanish
New York - WADO-Spanish
WBAI - Progressive
New York - WBAI - Progressive
WOL-Urban
Washington - WOL-Urban

Listen to United Natiosns News