Dennis Norman
By:Dennis Norman
If you buy a foreclosed home that has an existing tenant in it you need to be sure you are aware of and comply with provisions of the “Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009″. The act went into effect on May 20,2009 and provides the following protections for the existing tenant:
- For the act to apply the tenant must be under a “Bona Fide Lease or Tenancy”which the act describes as:
- the tenant is not the mortgagor or the child,spouse or parent of the mortgagor
- the lease or tenancy was the result of an arms-length transaction,and
- the lease or tenancy requires the receipt of rent that is not substantially less than fair market rent for the property or the unit’s rent is reduced or subsidized due to a Federal,State or local subsidy
- tenancy or lease was in effect as of the date of the “notice”of foreclosure
- If the tenant meets the above requirements then the following apply:
- if tenant has a lease,tenant shall be permitted to occupy the premises until the end of the remaining term of the lease,unless the purchaser intends to occupy the property or unit as their primary residence in which case tenants occupancy cannot be terminated until 90 days after receiving notice to vacate
- if tenant does not have a lease or if the lease is terminable at will under State law,then tenant shall be given not less than 90 days after receipt of notice to vacate.
Your first notion may be that the tenant is a bad tenant and did not pay their rent which lead to the owners financial demise,however in many instances that is not true. It seems there are plenty of foreclosures with good tenants but owners that had other issues that affected them and lead to the foreclosure. Even if your notion is right,and the tenant is bad,you still need to adhere to the new law and give the proper notices and time,before asking the tenant to vacate. If you find yourself in this situation it would be a real good idea to consult with an attorney for guidance to assure you comply with the law.
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Hi,I need to know what to do my landlord hasen’t paid morgage in 5 months and the house in forclosure. Can I purchase it with my credit rating which isn’t good. And do I have to move i’m so confused can you give some advise? And do I have to pay rent to the landlord at this point?
Hi Shalicka,
I’m sorry to hear about your situation…it sounds like your situation is exactly what Congress was trying to address and help with the Helping Families Save their home act of 2009.
Unfortunatley I am not an attorney and cannot give you legal advice about your particular situation but you may want to contact http://www.lsc.gov/ –this is the site for Legal Services,a not-for-profit organization established and funded by Congress that provides free legal representation to qualifying families,they may be able to help you. They have local offices throughout the country.
Good luck to you and God Bless,
Dennis Norman
We have really been helping people in this same situation. If you would like some free advice we can offer that to you. Please contact me at 1-877-807-3779 thank you. or by email at;support@americanlmg.com
the house we have been renting for 4 years was purchassed by an investor who wants us out. we were on a month to month agreement when they purchased it. they offered us lease agreement for 90 days. can i require to recieve a 90 days eviction notice instead of signing any agreeement? my understanding is that we can stay for 90 days per terms we already had and they all fit to Protecting Tenant in a Foreclosure Act. also,do we have to give a new landlord security deposit if we are served with 90 days notice? thank you.
lila,
Thanks for the comment…The act seems clear that it requires the new owner (that did not buy the home for a residence) to let a tenant with a lease live out their full lease (provided it meets the requirments of a bona-fide lease) or if a tenant does not have a lease but other form of tenancy than not less than 90 days notice to vacate,from the date of the notice,again provided the tenancy is “bona-fide”….
So,as an invetor,if I bought a home at foreclosure that had a tenant with a month-to-month tenancy,then I would think I have to give the tenant at least 90 days to vacante from the date I give them notice. If my plan is to get rid of the tenant in the 90 day period then I don’t know why a tenant would sign a 90 day lease with me….it most likely would get them nothing and would most likely improve my situation as the owner…I also think there is no way I could expect a tenant to give me a deposit under those conditions…I also wouldn’t expect the tenant would pay me any rent in that 90 day period either if there is no upside for them.
Having said all that,if I was going to offer the tenant something better,such as a 1 year lease,then I could see a tenant entering into the lease with me,paying a deposit,etc…
I am not an attorney and cannot give you legal advice about your particular situation but you may want to contact http://www.lsc.gov/ – this is the site for Legal Services,a not-for-profit organization established and funded by Congress that provides free legal representation to qualifying families,they may be able to help you. They have local offices throughout the country.
Useful site,where did you come up with the info in this post? I’m pleased I found it though,ill be checking back soon to see what other articles you have.
does the 2009 home foreclosure act cover short sale tenants? also can the present owner evict us?