Renting a Foreclosure

Question:

So my family and I just started renting this house 2 months ago, and yesterday we are given and eviction and told that we have to leave our home. We just payed our rent and 2 days later given the eviction by the bank. The landlord doesn't own the house anymore but he still took the rent!! Is there anything we can do?? Our landlord knew he was losing his home and he rented it to us anyway.
Please help

Answer:

[Please see the discussion below.]

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What to do when your landlord goes into foreclosure

A growing problem seems to be that many tenants find that the house or apartment building they are renting is going into foreclosure, due to the inability of the owner to continue paying the mortgage. The tenants are arguably in an even worse situation than the homeowners themselves at this point, because they have no control over the process of finding a solution that will stop foreclosure and allow them to remain in the home. They are also bound by the lease agreement, and risk the negative consequences of breaking the contract before its term has expired. However, there are a number of suggestions for tenants in this situation who are concerned with helping the landlord keep the property or just securing their own living arrangements beyond the foreclosure.

More...

What to do When Your Landlord Goes Into Foreclosure

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What is foreclosure?

Foreclosure is the legal and professional proceeding in which a mortgagee, or other lien holder, usually a lender, obtains a court ordered termination of a mortgagor's equitable right of redemption. Usually a lender obtains a security interest from a borrower who mortgages or pledges an asset like a house to secure the loan. If the borrower defaults and the lender tries to repossess the property, courts of equity can grant the borrower the equitable right of redemption if the borrower repays the debt. While this equitable right exists, the lender cannot be sure that it can successfully repossess the property, thus the lender seeks to foreclose the equitable right of redemption. Other lien holders can also foreclose the owner's right of redemption for other debts, such as for overdue taxes, unpaid contractors' bills or overdue HOA dues or assessments.

The foreclosure process as applied to residential mortgage loans is a bank or other secured creditor selling or repossessing a parcel of real property (immovable property) after the owner has failed to comply with an agreement between the lender and borrower called a "mortgage" or "deed of trust". Commonly, the violation of the mortgage is a default in payment of a promissory note, secured by a lien on the property. When the process is complete, the lender can sell the property and keep the proceeds to pay off its mortgage and any legal costs, and it is typically said that "the lender has foreclosed its mortgage or lien". If the promissory note was made with a recourse clause then if the sale does not bring enough to pay the existing balance of principal and fees the mortgagee can file a claim for a deficiency judgement.




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[dlynes]

I am not a lawyer, so take that into consideration.

Now, I am also in Canada, and the laws might be a little different. However, that being said, unless you had a lease, and that lease was registered against the title, you don't have a case against the bank. The only thing you can do is go after the ex-landlord for your rent.

Please do a search on the net for more information on the following case law:

In Bank of Montreal v. Silvera, [2009] O.J. No. 442 (ON S.C.)
the Bank sought a declaration against the tenants of a
residential dwelling that it was entitled to vacant possession of
the property.

[sandra]

I was able to find this government consumer affairs resource for state of California. It offers practical advice and hopefully will give you some guidance.

California Tenants - California Department of Consumer Affairs

Originally Posted by dlynes I am not a lawyer, so take that into consideration. Now, I am also in Canada, and the laws might be a little different. However, that being said, unless you had a lease, and that lease was registered against the title, you don't have a case against the bank. The only thing you can do is go after the ex-landlord for your rent. Please do a search on the net for more information on the following case law: In Bank of Montreal v. Silvera, [2009] O.J. No. 442 (ON S.C.) the Bank sought a declaration against the tenants of a residential dwelling that it was entitled to vacant possession of the property.

The above is generally true for US law too...but you can make the bank do a full eviction and go to court so you can sometimes buy more time that way as well--and then sue the thieving landlord in small claims court!!