Sale of rental property while occupied?

[pascoe69]

if a landlord sales the house you are renting out from under you, can the new ower evict you eventhough your rent is paid up (to the previous landlord) past the eviction date? this is happening to a friend. she was told a month ago that he would be selling the house and the guy looking to buy it wasnt buying it to rent out. she is in the process of moving but papers were signed and owership changed hands yesterday. she has already paid her rent for this month so its paid up till the 25th, which she promised to be out by. she was informed this morning by the new owner that she had till the 10th (3 days) to be out! the former landlord says he doesnt owe her security back because the house wasnt cleaned and no repairs were made when he signed it over. can they really do that?

[kalvin71]

Short answer: NO - the new landlord can't force her out.

The lease is binding and transfers to the new owner. The new owner must honor the terms. Some of what your friend needs to know will be state specific though. For example, in my state the new landlord also inherits the responsibility to refund deposit even if he never received it from the old landlord at closing.

In my opinion, your friend is in a position to fight this if she wants to. If she doesn't, she's at least entitled to a fair disposition of her deposit and a rebate for any rent she paid for days beyond her last day of occupancy. My advice - she should talk to an attorney, legal aid, or a tenant/consumer advocacy person before it's too late.

[denys]

Your friend can sue the current landlord and the new owner to stay living in the home until her lease is up and for her security deposit. Take them both to small claims court and take all the required paperwork with her. Also take picture of the home to prove that she is leaving the home in good condition.

[tripp]

Yes, they can if they are claiming the home as a primary residence. he still has to formally evict her, which will likely take longer. So by the time he gives her proper notice, files eviction, gets a court date and then gets a judgement, it'll likely be past the 25th anyway.

[bothan]

As far as I know, not it is illegal. If he knew he was going to sell the house then he should have asked her to move a few months before it was sold. She will have to sue the previous owner and the current owner in order to get the security deposit and remaining rent. Security deposit should be reurned because he no longer owns the property and is not liable for repairs, plus everything has a statue of limitations. Someone either old owner or new owes the security deposit and new owners have to abide by old contracts they can not evict unless rent is not paid or the person hasnt moved out after said date. I recommend googling the tenant/landlord laws for the state that she is in. Also calling the local housing authority for the number to the state tenant/landlord or relestate law. Or if low income getting in contact with legal aid to help. Knowing the renters law prevents landlords screwing its renters. Make sure any thing she requests from the landlord and new owner must be in writting, emails help alot!