Below you will see an interesting news article, along with a video about a tenant who died during his lease and the landlord’s response.
Fort Lauderdale Landlord Emulates Scrooge In Demanding Rent From Dead Man
Fort Lauderdale, FL (AHN) – Florida’s overbuilt and slow real estate market has left the state over loaded with a huge inventory of homes, condos and apartments that don’t sell or rent. That might explain why one South Florida landlord is seeking rent from a dead man, claiming that he is owed three months rent because the tenant failed to give 60 days notice before dropping dead of an unexpected heart attack.
Fort Lauderdale landlord Alan Statsky claims he is owed the money for the apartment at Sun Harbour Yearly Residences that Art Zissen left vacant after dying there of a heart attack on Sept. 22.
"Part of the contract says if you abandon your lease and you don’t pay on your lease that we have a right to collect your security deposit," property manager Alan Statsky was quoted as saying by Local 10 news.
But it’s not just the dead man’s security deposit. In a move that could have been a scene in novelist Charles Dickens’ "A Christmas Carol" by character Ebenezer Scrooge, Statsky wants rent for October, November and December for the vacant apartment too. And since Art Zissen is dead, Statsky sent his relatives a bill for three months of rent.
Although it’s up to a Broward County judge to interpret the lease in January, a lawyer says the lease died when Zissen did leaving Statsky without any contract to enforce.
"This landlord’s ability to collect rent came to an end when Mr. Zissen died," Russell White, an attorney for Zissen’s family, was quoted as saying by Local 10 news. He added, "That landlord, in my view, is trying to take advantage of the situation to extract money. It looks to me that it’s motivated on pure greed."
Zissen’s brother notified the apartment management company on Sept. 24 that his brother had died, then cleaned out the apartment and did a walk through with apartment managers on Oct. 5.
While I can understand the man’s estate being responsible for the remainder of the lease I would expect the death to remove the need for notice. Is it really abandonment? It seems like the bother was trying to do the right thing. This just reminds me of something Bill Maher said when interviewing Elizabeth Warren. They were discussing the recently passed Credit Card legislation and Bill said that it was needed because we just don’t treat each other very well. This is another example of that. I can see legislation being formed because one guy wants to rip off another one here.
I guess I should be flattered. I put time into all my advertising materials. I take pictures that flatter the property. I give nice descriptions of what each property offers, etc. Marketing 101.
As a normal course of business I keep an eye on the competition. I look at what they are offering, the rents they are charging, what they charge, if anything, for background checks, etc. I want to make sure my business is in line with the market. Business 101.
During my perusal of Craigslist ads this morning I read one that is for $50.00 higher than I am offering. This property offers a deck in the rear of the property and a garage. OK, sounds reasonable. As I read through the ad I see all my descriptive keywords. Spacious, beautiful, updated, oak, expanded, you get the idea. As I read this ad I am thinking that it’s just my ad reworded to talk about another property. Even the line for the background check was taken verbatim, except they charge $5.00 more.
I should be flattered. I am this person’s mentor and he/she doesn’t even know it.
To play catch-up on what is going on with the rental world, House #1 is back on the market.
The tenants gave notice they were moving and left at the end of February. I had 1 day of showings for the property where I had 3 prospective groups come through. Of those 1 wanted to "cut a deal" to do work for reduced rent. He had a valid business but I’d be breaking my own rules to accept work done for reduced rent. Especially since his landlord reference was also his boss, who was also his Uncle. You can see where all the eggs are in one basket and that basket is biased.
The second and third sets of prospective tenants were nice but each had their own issues that caused me to reject them. I can deal with low credit scores but when someone goes below 525 I just think "Wow". In addition to the low scores both of these groups had addresses that didn’t match up to the credit reports. Lastly, one of the applicants from the groups was someone who was 40+ and the only thing on his credit report, at all, was 1 parking ticket which was not paid. There were’t even any inquiries for credit listed on the report at all. The addresses he provided didn’t match to his credit report, just too much which seemed off.
No, I don't have an eviction and I didn't try a self-help eviction.
The article below is another reason to show that you need to know the laws regarding your business.
Self help evictions are illegal in most areas of this country. This guy learned the hard way that he should have just taken the woman to court and had her evicted legally.
SPRING VALLEY, N.Y. (AP) — A New York landlord was fined nearly $10,000 for removing the toilet and other fixtures from a basement apartment to get his tenant to move out. The Rockland Board of Health issued the fine to Fausto Pinos on Wednesday. He had been charged with 24 housing code violations for conditions in the building in Spring Valley, a town north of New York City. "The people living there were subjected to appalling conditions that were not fit for human habitation," said Dr. Jeffrey Oppenheim, the health board's president. "It was just disgusting." Pinos, of Bushkill, Pa., did not appear at the meeting, but his brother, Jesus Pinos, speaking on his behalf, said the landlord did not dispute the charges. He said Pinos thought that removing the toilet, bathtub, sink, oven and countertop would force the woman and her child to move. County officials had been tipped off to problems in the apartment in early November by an agency that was trying to help the woman. Inspectors found numerous health and safety violations, including a roach infestation and sewage in the bathtub. The Department of Health issued emergency violations letters to Fausto Pinos on Nov. 5, according to records. When inspectors visited the apartment again Nov. 17, they discovered that the toilet and other fixtures had been removed. The tenant told inspectors that Pinos removed the items the day before and told her to leave. But she said she had no other place to go. The Department of Social Services helped relocate the woman and her child.
Today’s news is that if you try to kill yourself over your mortgage payment your debt will be forgiven. What is this world coming to? Hey, if someone tried to kill me over my mortgage can I get a free ride too?
AKRON, Ohio – Mortgage finance company Fannie Mae said it is forgiving the mortgage debt of a 90-year-old woman who shot herself in the chest as sheriff’s deputies attempted to evict her.
Addie Polk’s plight was cited by Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, on Friday before the House voted to approve the $700 billion financial rescue package. Kucinich voted against the plan.
Fannie Mae announced later Friday that it would dismiss its foreclosure action, forgive Polk’s mortgage and allow her to return to the Akron home where she’s lived since 1970.
“Just given the circumstances, we think it’s appropriate,” Fannie Mae spokesman Brian Faith said, citing Kucinich’s statement and news reports. “It certainly made our radar screen.”
Polk remained in Akron General Medical Center and was expected to recover from chest wounds suffered last week.
She became the home’s sole owner in 1995 when her husband died, then took out a mortgage loan in 1997 and refinanced several times, court and property records show.
Countrywide Home Loans filed for foreclosure last year, and Polk’s home was sold to Fannie Mae at a sheriff’s auction in June. Deputies were to escort Polk from her home Wednesday when gunshots were heard inside.
Polk’s longtime neighbor, Robert Dillon, climbed through her window and found her lying in bed bleeding with a gun next to her. He visited Polk in the hospital on Friday.
“She said it was a crazy thing to do, now that she’s had time to think about it,” Dillon said.
I guess I should be flattered. I put time into all my advertising materials. I take pictures that flatter the property. I give nice descriptions of what each property offers, etc. Marketing 101. 
To play catch-up on what is going on with the rental world, House #1 is back on the market.
Today’s news is that if you try to kill yourself over your mortgage payment your debt will be forgiven. What is this world coming to? Hey, if someone tried to kill me over my mortgage can I get a free ride too?