fraudulant renting

umm ok so my boyfriend and i found a home out in olivehurst california ... it seemed like a dream come true! it was a 1900 sq ft home only 5 years old 4 bed 2bath a dream home! and only $950 a month! the only catch was that it was a month to month rent. we looked and talked it over and agreed we would do it. we sat down with the landlord and asked why it was month to month...she stated that it was becasue they were trying to sale it and that it would be atleast 4 months before they put it back on the market and that they would tell us when it would go back up to give us time to find somewhere else to live.. but they were addimit that it was month to month and that it was because they were trying to sale it and that we had nothing to worry about.. so we agreed, we paid them the $500 non refundable deposit, $850 pro rated rent for the month and spent $140 in moving, $75 to get the trash cans back..$50 to get power turned back on and $20 get the city to come back out and change the mailbox locks....totaling $1600 just to move in! then two weeks go by and oct rent is due which is $950 .. so the land lord now has $2500 dollars of our money! i am writing because last week on thrusday night we as tenants were served with a 30 notice to quit because the home had been repoed and forcolsed on and the forclosure was stated to be finalized as of sept. 28! we called the landlord and asked her about it and she said she knew all along and thats why they were renting it out. not becasue they were trying to sale it. but according to the notice they didnt even own the house to rent it. so i am wondering what to do! please help! we have no where to go and 30 to surrender the house! no one will call us back from the mortagage company and the landlords have basically washed their hands of us and took the money and ran!! is this leagal!! should we try to get our money back!? the landlords wont give us our deposit back... and they basically after having the one phone call with them when we received the notice dont really seem to care and are like well we told you month to month...your lose... what should we do! if there is anything we can do! please help!

[OHlandlord]

I hate to do this but I've got to ask you several questions to clarify the situation before I can respond. First, what was the notice you got? Was it a notice saying that the house is *going* into foreclosure to be auctioned off, that the bank *is going to* take it back, the bank *already did* take it back, a notice from whom? And what did it say? Did it actually give you 30 days to vacate the premises? Please post the wording of the notice you received.

You say the notice states that the owner did not own the house, who did? When (what date) did you sign the month to month agreement? What date was the foreclosure? Was it a court foreclosure, or did the bank just take the property back?

Also, what is this business about a non-refundable deposit? Deposits, by nature, are supposed to be refundable. Does your receipt or agreement state a "non-refundable deposit"? Or does it list it as a non-refundable fee, and what is it for? Normally the deposit is for security in case of damage by the tenant. If they have changed this to non-refundable, what is it supposed to be for?

Please respond to each of these questions so I can understand the timing of this situation. Normally, until it is actually foreclosed on, the owner is still in charge and may rent out the property as long as he still officially owns it. However, if the property had already been foreclosed on and he no longer was the owner (and had just not surrendered it yet to the mortgage company), he shouldn't be renting out property that he knows he no longer owns. Please give me more specifics.

ok... the noticed we recived stated that under code 2924 that the in lamens terms on how we figured it out after doing some calling around and research was that the home was no longer the owners it actually stated that the LLs names to quit. it said that if the oocupents were the owners that they had three days to surrender the property or legal actions would be taken to have them surrender the property at the mortgages companies will. then it stated that if we were tenants that we had thirty days to surrender the home or the same legal actions would be taken. and then it stated the day the forcloser was finalized which it was done so on sept. 28,2007. we moved in sept. 10,2007 and they gave us a month to month lease agrrement to sign on sept 30,2007. the non refundable deposit was never stated why it was non refundable only that it was non refundable.. we tried tell them we need it back because of the deception they made us believe and she said we agreed to a non refundable deposit of $500 dollars... basically are lose..it is just frusturationg because when we spoke over the phone the day after recviing the notice she knew exactlly what i was talking about knew that the house was nearing the final stage of the forclouser and still rented it out to us.. now i can see them renting for the two weeks we were there that they still legally owned it and getting rent for it ...but not oct. and they should i think refund all the money we spent to get the house functioning again...ie the trash the electricity the water the mail ....we basically got cond into this and we dont know how to get out!

[OHlandlord]

You moved in on Sept. 10th, but the foreclosure didn't take place until Sept. 28th, so the LL *was* still the owner of the property until that date. They did have the legal right to rent out the house (although it was immoral and unethical to do so knowing that they were being foreclosed on shortly). Unfortunately, we can legislate morals & ethics.

Why wasn't the agreement signed when you moved in? Why did you move in 20 days before you signed anything? That's not the normal way of renting a place. When did you pay those monies (specifically the non-refundable deposit)? If you paid those monies after the 28th, you may have a case for fraud here. If you paid them on the 10th, you may not.

I looked up CA Rev. Code 2924. Here is a link if you want to read it:
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/di...le=2920-2944.5
It says that you can get a copy of this default and other info by going to the office of the county Recorder. It also says that the owner was made aware of this default for 90 days before the sale is ordered. You do need to get ahold of the mortgage company and get more info, but from the what you have posted, if you are not out in 30 days, they can evict you.

I would start looking for another place immediately. Don't pay NOvember's rent since he no longer owns the house. Use it to move elsewhere. I'm afraid if the owner is having the house foreclosed, he may also be filing bankruptcy. If he does that, you will have no way to get any money back from him. But if he defrauded you by signing a rental agreement and took monies after he was no longer the owner, the county may prosecute him.

wow, helpful comments!

I face the same situation but with a few even worse twists. I am going to speak with a lawyer tomorrow but have been researching all night.

the reason why we didnt sign anything till later was because the lls actually live out of state and they were having other family members deal with the house. so it wasnt till almost two weeks later well it was actually the first of oct that the ll was in town and said they would come over and pick up the oct rent! thats when she said that she had a rental agreement for us to sign....so i dont know what you think of that but they took money from us for oct and the house was not theirs legally after sept 28th... i am just so confused and i know we have to be out in 30 days and my boyfriend wants to sue her and i dont but then i dont know what to do ! so if you have any ideas or what you think you would do in this situation please let me know i am open to any and all sugestions!

[OHlandlord]

I'm afraid suing her is not an option in all probability. If they have been foreclosed on, chances are they also filed for bankruptcy. If they did, you may soon receive a paper that says any money owed to you wil be included in their BK filing. However, if they fail to include you in the BK, you can wait until after their BK is final, then sue them. It only covers the debts they list.

I would suggest you contact the mortgage company and let them know that you have received the notice and will be out as soon as possible. Let them know that you are completely cooperative on this. But also let them know that the owner signed a lease and accepted money from you after they repoed the house from him. That is fraud. Start looking for a place to mone to immediately.

I would contact the local prosecutor or law enforcement and explain that this LL signed a lease and accepted money from you after the house had been foreclosed upon, and that, unbeknownst to you, it had already been become the banks' property before you signed this agreement. The LL had no legal right to convey any interest or residency in the property at that time. See if they will let you press charges against the LL for fraud.

thank you i will check into that... as for the mortgage compay..still no answer and it is now day three of trying to call them...but thank you for yor help and we may have found a place...so thanks again you have been a huge help!

we finally got a hold of the mortgage company and they are working with us. they actually belive that the home no longer belonged to the "lls" long prior to the rental date we moved in. and that they have paperwork showing that the lls acknowledged the fact that they no longer owned the home. they are faxing all the paper they can give us today and hopefully we find that this was all fraud. because talking to mortgage company they said the home hasnt been in their name for a month or so.... seems like everything might turn out for the better. now if this is the case and the mortgage company is right should my boyfriend persue sueing them or turn it over and let the county deal with it?

[OHlandlord]

I'd turn it over to the county and see if they would pursue this first. If they prosecute them, it will be easier to sue and prove your case. The mortgage company may even help you with this since they are sending you the paperwork. This may even be a bigger crime depending on if this was a government type bank or mortgage company (like Freddie Mac or Fanny Mae). Then it might fall under federal regulations. Also, check state law and see if LLs in your state must be registered or are governed by some legal authority. (Some states make LLs apply for a permit to operate rentals.) If so, contact this body and let them know what has happened. They too can investigate and pursue this. It can't hurt to get as much heat on these people as possible. In the meantime, find another place to move, then send a demand for your deposit to the LLs by certified mail, return receipt requested, and keep a copy. You will have to afford them an opportunity like this legally before you sue. (And it will look good to any judge.) Good luck.