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My roommate and I signed a lease for apt. in the Bronx on March 15. We went to the broker that the landlord hired, saw the apt and signed the lease the very next day. We gave in first, last, security and half a brokers fee. In the ad we saw it said pets were allowed. Before we signed the lease I asked again if pets were allowed and the broker said yes however he amended the lease to say pets allowed. My roommate and I were told that the landlord was on vacation and would sign and give us the lease in a few days. About a week later the landlord gives us the keys to the apt. 3 weeks after we've been there he says we can't have the dog. So we go back and forth on this issue for about 2 weeks and finally I give my dog to a friend until the end of my lease. I called the lawyer for the landlord and I met with him on Friday May 7. Now the landlord is saying that he wants me to pay part of his counseling fees for his lawyer ($500) and give him what is due in the rent (which is 2 weeks for march and rent for may) and then he will sign the lease. I told him I couldn't meet with him on Tues. May 11 but could meet with him on Friday May 14 for sure. Now the landlord is telling me that since I can't meet with him on Tues. he's going to start the eviction process since we can't meet earlier. My roommate and I have all of the $ however it's hard b/c she's just had a baby and I work 3 jobs plus I'm in school. On top of that he wants us both to sign a new lease together that clearly states no pets allowed however we both meet with him for sure until Friday. What do I do now? Legally can he really go about things the way that he has?
First of all don't worry about eviction. Evictions take time and money and if you're willing to meet on Friday and pay up there is no way he going to get anything going in Landlord/Tenant Court. Even under a nonpayment suit all you have to do is pay to stop the suit. No judge will evict you for that. If he has deposited your checks for security and 2 month's rent then he has tacitly approved your tenancy even without a signed lease. Do you have a copy of the lease and any signed contracts with the broker? This can represent evidence in your favor that he originally didn't object to pets or at least shows the broker misrepresented the apartment. Furthermore he has no grounds to evict you that I can see. Sorry about the dog. If you want to try, when he is in a good mood an extra pet security deposit might help.
I would ignore the request for lawyers fees and offer the rent owed in return for the lease. In this market it's crazy to nickel/dime a tenant. It would cost him several thousand to try to extract $500 from you in coutr plus months. Is the landlord's name victorfox by any chance?
No it's not me tenant advocate modsquad. I would never rent to people that claim to have 3 jobs plus a baby to. What happens if you lose 1 of the 3 jobs? Then what? It appears that this person is living paycheck to paycheck and being in the real estate business, having a tenant like this is NOT ideal and not good for business. You must have strong finanical references to qualify for one of my apartment. And no, we do not accept section 8 or welfare people. The Bronx has enough of those people, we don't need more.
No it's not me tenant advocate modsquad. I would never rent to people that claim to have 3 jobs plus a baby to. What happens if you lose 1 of the 3 jobs? Then what? It appears that this person is living paycheck to paycheck and being in the real estate business, having a tenant like this is NOT ideal and not good for business. You must have strong finanical references to qualify for one of my apartment. And no, we do not accept section 8 or welfare people. The Bronx has enough of those people, we don't need more.
Your logic about losing one of the three jobs doesn't make any sense. If someone has 3 jobs, presumably one third of their income is coming from each job. If they lose one, they still have 2/3 of their income. If someone has one job, that's presumably 100% of their income. If they lose their job, then they don't have any income.
To OP there is no way I would be giving in to any threats about eviction or payment of lawyer fees, although it is not clear to me why you called his lawyer to begin with. Was it at the landlord's request? And what transpired during this conversation? You could try calling a free tenant advocate such as KNOWING YOUR RIGHTS
Clearly if the tenant was paid well from the first job, he wouldn't need a 2nd or 3rd job. It appears that all 3 jobs are minimum wage jobs. So I stand by my comment that if the tenant loses 1 of the 3 jobs, it will create a hardship on the tenant. So where do you think will the first expense be neglected by the tenant? The baby expenses or the rent? 99.9% I would say the rent. Especially in the pro-tenant world of rent stabilization, the tenant could miss 3-4 rent payments without getting evicted and drag this out for several months. You think I don't know the system?
And for that specific reason, I would NEVER rent to a tenant with more than 1 job. It's a red flag whenever you see something like that. As a good property manager or landlord, you have to know how to properly evaluate your prospective tenants otherwise you can get screwed big time.
.... I would NEVER rent to a tenant with more than 1 job....
This takes the cake as the most ridiculous of all the ridiculous prejudices you have exhibited .
First you rant and rave about people who don't work or who get any kind of assistance paying their rent and now you are ranting about people who are willing to work hard to make ends meet ?
I guess you would never rent to anyone who works overtime either ? On the theory their hours could be cut back at any time and they wouldn't be able to pay the rent ?
Do you put a clause in your apartment ads that says "No hard working people need apply" ?
This takes the cake as the most ridiculous of all the ridiculous prejudices you have exhibited .
First you rant and rave about people who don't work or who get any kind of assistance paying their rent and now you are ranting about people who are willing to work hard to make ends meet ?
I guess you would never rent to anyone who works overtime either ? On the theory their hours could be cut back at any time and they wouldn't be able to pay the rent ?
Do you put a clause in your apartment ads that says "No hard working people need apply" ?
LOL...bluedog you're funny. Of coarse I like working people and prefer to rent to them over tenants on programs. With that said, think about this...Why would someone seek and have 3 jobs? The obvious reason is they have too many expense that 1 job alone is unable to cover. Another no brainer is if they lose 1 or even 2 of the jobs, its fair to say that this will create a hardship on the person. No?
If thats the case, given the pro-tenant business environment of Rent Stabilization, chances are that the person will be unable to pay their rent which will end up in housing court where the case can drag on for 4, 5, 6 months before the tenant is evicted. Meaning 4, 5, 6 months of UNPAID rent. Knowing that this is a possible outcome, why would I pick a person like that if I can easily pick a prospective tenant with better stable finances from 1 job that probably pays more than the other tenant's 3 jobs combined?
I think the LL is trying to hustle you and you should not play his game. He has no grounds to evict you, and if you signed a lease with pets allowed, and he deposited your checks already, you are fine. You should get your dog back and live your life without being annoyed by this LL. He won't evict you, he is bluffing, and even if he is dumb enough to take you to court, he will lose and be out the court costs/attorney fees, and his time, none of which he can force you to pay. In addition, YOU CAN SUE HIM for harassment.
Based on your comment, I don't think you have anything to worry about. Get your dog back , pay your rent on time, and hold onto your lease. So long as you do that, you will be fine.
LOL...bluedog you're funny. Of coarse I like working people and prefer to rent to them over tenants on programs. With that said, think about this...Why would someone seek and have 3 jobs? The obvious reason is they have too many expense that 1 job alone is unable to cover. Another no brainer is if they lose 1 or even 2 of the jobs, its fair to say that this will create a hardship on the person. No?
If thats the case, given the pro-tenant business environment of Rent Stabilization, chances are that the person will be unable to pay their rent which will end up in housing court where the case can drag on for 4, 5, 6 months before the tenant is evicted. Meaning 4, 5, 6 months of UNPAID rent. Knowing that this is a possible outcome, why would I pick a person like that if I can easily pick a prospective tenant with better stable finances from 1 job that probably pays more than the other tenant's 3 jobs combined?
Well, sure, that's a no-brainer as a landlord. If you have two candidates in front of you and one is gainfully employed in one stable job and earning a better income than the second candidate who is patching three jobs together to come up with an income that is significantly less than the income of the first tenant, of course you would choose the first tenant. I would too.
But I don't see anywhere in this thread where that is the option being presented to you. This is just something you made up. In fact, it seems like you are just popping into threads to advance your anti-rent-stabilization argument, and that's unfair to the OPs and frankly seems a bit desperate.
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