Rights of Buyers of Repossession Houses Also Protected
The rights of renters of repossession houses were emphasized when the law titled Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act of 2009 was signed and launched by President Obama last month.
But the rights of buyers were also included in the new legislation, in addition to rights already protected in relation to home purchases and home ownership.
While new legislation protects renters from being evicted abruptly from repossession houses without any notice and without any consideration of the situation of families who have paid their deposits and have been paying their rent religiously, it does not protect renters who do not pay their rent on time.
The new law requires buyers or lenders to give a 90-day notification to renters of repossession houses before they are evicted. This notice will give enough time for renters to find another rental house and to make necessary adjustments related to their children’s schools.
While the law also protects renters who hold leases on repossession houses, allowing them to stay in the property until the expiration of the lease, the law also protects buyers who need to stay or who plan to occupy the properties. Buyers just have to comply with the 90-day notification order by giving tenants a three-month notice of lease contract termination.
If there are already state or local laws that provide longer notice periods or better protections for renters of foreclosed homes, these state or local laws take precedence. Information related to this issue can be obtained at the web site of the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
In addition, renters with month-to-month rental deals with their landlords are not covered by the lease provision of the law. Renters cannot keep on extending their lease by continuously paying their rent to extend their lease. Nevertheless, they are still covered by the 90-day notice provision.
Buyers should not be discouraged in buying foreclosure houses because of this new law protecting renters of repossession houses. There are many repossessed properties that are not occupied by tenants. The new law was not in any way intended to block the recovery of the struggling foreclosure property market.
In cases where there are tenants in repossession houses, investors or prospective owner-occupants can negotiate with their sellers so that their closing will coincide with the expiration of the 90-day notice or with the time the tenants have already moved out of the foreclosed properties.
Related Posts:
- Foreclosed Properties on Sale in New Jersey Get Attention
- Tenants of Foreclosure Properties on Sale Suffer Most
- Foreclosures: Renters Have No Protection
- Foreclosure Bill Changes to Ease Georgia Foreclosures
- FTC Wants Tougher Repossession Houses Rescue Rules
