Eviction of disabled Section 8 tenant in Dorchester - help finding resources (Boston: apartment, lease)

[charolastra00]

Hi all,

My boyfriend's best friend came home yesterday to an eviction notice on his door. He has cerebral palsy, grew up in the foster care system, and while able to live semi-independently, he has never been able to work because of regular severe health issues and lifelong lack of cognitive support. He gets Section 8 housing.

We are currently unsure about why he is being evicted. Apparently he has had some complaints from his downstairs neighbor because he is a loud stepper (as one can imagine when on good days you can only move around on crutches), but he's lived in this place for 3 years and it's nothing new. There's been no problem paying his burden of the rent because of SSD payments.

I am trying to find resources for him since I am woefully ignorant to how Section 8 works or the resources available to help him find a new place. He was not able to tell me if he's on a lease or if he's month to month - my guess is the latter. While I know it's legally Kosher to evict any tenant with only the 30 day notice required, I am feeling particularly angry that this landlord would evict a seriously disabled tenant with that much notice. My boyfriend and I will of course help as much as possible, but we both have our own issues (I'm recovering from cancer treatment, my boyfriend has advanced glaucoma - did I mention all 3 of us are in our mid-20s?) so our help is a bit limited.

I have already had to intervene between this friend and some scams. He just doesn't have the capacity to avoid the scams.

Long story short - do you have any suggestions for organizations that might be able to help him? I don't know if he has a caseworker who can offer assistance. I am just very concerned that he could end up homeless at the end of the month (neither my apartment nor my boyfriend's apartment is handicapped accessible and we both have roommates or else we'd let him crash with one of us). He can crutch up stairs most days, but often does need use of his wheelchair.

Any direction would be appreciated!

[sm4269a]

Call Greater Boston Legal Services.

[nyanna]

He may have to stay in a nursing home until he can find another place to live

[ogre]

Bless you (and your bf) for looking out for your friend as best you can. This sounds like true friendship.

Second the suggestion to start seeking legal help, and to see what free legal services there may be for someone in this situation. I also think it would be a good idea to find out why he is being evicted. It never hurts to know exactly the situation you're faced with, and it often helps.

Be aware also that a landlord cannot actually evict a tenant legally. A lawful eviction requires a court order. There could be issues in terms of the relationship with the landlord if this were to end up in court, but another reason to seek legal assistance is that a judge will often consider a tenant's individual situation in setting an eviction date. For a tenant with special needs, this may mean the eviction date will be significantly later than the 30 days the landlord gives in the notice to quit. Or, depending on the circumstances, it's even possible that a judge will not order an eviction if the judge is not satisfied that the landlord's reason for serving notice to quit is sound legally. Your friend should have a much better idea what his situation really is and how to deal with it if he knows the reason for the notice to quit, and finds a lawyer to guide him through the process of negotiating the situation.

[missionhill]

Try the Boston Center for Independent Living. They're equipped to offer support, referrals, and resources for people with disabilities.

[charolastra00]

Thanks everyone for the resources and info. Ogre, I had no idea about the eviction bit! He really doesn't want to make things difficult for his landlord (though my opinion is that he's a total slumlord - but I appreciate that my friend is a whole lot less Type A than me!), but finding an appropriate place for someone with CP is very difficult even when Section 8 isn't factored in.

I'm trying to find out more details about why he is being evicted and also get a peek at his lease. He's not really able to reason through this process so it's hard to get info out of him. I am hoping that Greater Boston Legal Services might be able to call the landlord for us. I think a lawyer or legal representation talking to the landlord about the situation would be much better than a friend calling.

Every time something like this happens, I think about going to law school again. I'll keep you all updated so hopefully if anyone else has this happen to themselves or a loved one.

[ogre]

Have you ever had contact with the landlord, or is your description of him as a "slumlord" based on what you've heard about him from your friend? The reason I ask is that I'm wondering whether it's possible for you to get a close enough look at the situation to get a feel for whether the landlord can be negotiated with at this point, since it sounds as if your friend may have a disability that could make it difficult for him to size people up.

You said your friend does not want to make trouble for the landlord. Maybe I've got some type A in me as well, but as a tenant I wouldn't worry about making trouble for the landlord except when that would cause trouble to circle back around to me. The tenant in such a situation will be best off being callous and looking out for his own interests. This can mean not making trouble for the landlord if it appears that negotiation is still possible and making trouble would close off that possibility, but if the landlord is already past the point of being reasonable, then the tenant really needs to look out for number one. Trying to discuss things calmly and reasonably with a landlord who has already moved past the point of compromise and is just out to get the tenant makes the tenant a minnow hoping to avoid being eaten by negotiating with a shark.

You mentioned looking at your friend's lease. If he has a lease, this is probably a good thing, as it means that the landlord is more limited in the legal grounds for eviction than is the case with a tenancy at will. Legal counsel would really help here. From personal experience in the past with an unscrupulous landlady and her lying, cheating husband I can tell you that the landlord/tenant laws in this state are extensive. Even though they're designed mainly to protect tenants from abuse by landlords, the extensiveness of the laws can make it a complicated process to make sure the tenant knows his legal rights well enough to get the law working for him rather than against him. It would really be good to get advice from an expert.

Best of luck with this situation, and please do let us know how it goes.

[wynchym]

you can request a reasonable accommodation to put extra padding on the floors, yes that is right, he is disabled, let me give you an example, if a disabled tenant has outbursts due to his disability and say breaks windows, you can request a reasonable accommodation to put plastic instead of glass. Many people do not know their rights, visit huds reasonable accommodation guidelines, and if the landlord denies the request, well they will have a day in court. You have rights, do not forget that, knowledge is power, learn them o n your own, visit the fairhousing laws and discrimination in housing, also check the 504 reasonable accommodation act. There you will find valuable information. Good luck

[reenzz]

Originally Posted by wynchym

you can request a reasonable accommodation to put extra padding on the floors, yes that is right, he is disabled, let me give you an example, if a disabled tenant has outbursts due to his disability and say breaks windows, you can request a reasonable accommodation to put plastic instead of glass. Many people do not know their rights, visit huds reasonable accommodation guidelines, and if the landlord denies the request, well they will have a day in court. You have rights, do not forget that, knowledge is power, learn them o n your own, visit the fairhousing laws and discrimination in housing, also check the 504 reasonable accommodation act. There you will find valuable information. Good luck

This is correct, but understand that the tenant must pay for the xtra padding and it's installation and removal.

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by wynchym

you can request a reasonable accommodation to put extra padding on the floors, yes that is right, he is disabled, let me give you an example, if a disabled tenant has outbursts due to his disability and say breaks windows, you can request a reasonable accommodation to put plastic instead of glass. Many people do not know their rights, visit huds reasonable accommodation guidelines, and if the landlord denies the request, well they will have a day in court. You have rights, do not forget that, knowledge is power, learn them o n your own, visit the fairhousing laws and discrimination in housing, also check the 504 reasonable accommodation act. There you will find valuable information. Good luck

They probably have an outcome being that the post was from 3 years ago.