indiana foreclosure law-any information
My landlord has filed Chapter 7 and his court date is middle of December.
Important information:
House is in Florida (I do think he is giving up his house)
Landlord lives and filed in Georgia
Mortgage company is in Indiana
Landlord has $1000 deposit
Landlord has 2nd mortgage
Landlord is upside down on house (owes more than house is worth)
My questions:
What is the time frame that I need to get out of house
How many days before I legally have to get out
When do I start counting days - from filing date - court date - other
What are my responsibilities for the house
Upkeep and repairs before I leave
Rent payments (landlord said to not pay him January rent to offset
deposit - is this okay)
What about months after house is not landlords and we have not had
to move out (if possible)
Is there anything I should worry about or be aware of
_Do you have a lease? When does it expire? The usual, as detailed in the lease.
Interesting point; the deposit should be in an escrow account, but
this makes it appear that it wasn't. If you don't want to leave, see a local real estate lawyer.
_This is posted by Gene Gayda, president of the New Hampshire Property Owners
Association: http://www.nhpoa.org . For a list of landlords, eviction law or security
deposit law in many states, go to: http://www.nhpoa.org/other.htm
The financial status of your landlord does not change his obligations to you nor your
obligations to him. He must still provide a habitable place for you to live; you must still
pay rent monthly. At least, that’s the theory. Where the landlord lives and where the
mortgage company has their office means nothing. Your relationship will be ruled by the
Florida Landlord And Tenant Laws. The quantity of mortgages and the amounts do not
change responsibilities per the law.
Only a court order can finally push you out the door. You should, initially, plan on
staying for the remainder of your lease. (>and it expires Feb. 1st.)
In a few to as many as some states, a lease automatically terminates when a foreclosure
occurs. A FL attorney can tell you whether this happens in your state. If the building is
sold to another normal owner or if a foreclosure does not terminate a lease, the lease must
be honored by the new owner regardless of any purchase deal made with the current
owner.
In a like manner, as long as the lease is not terminated (and then becomes the rental
agreement after the end of the lease period), your responsibilities per the lease remain in
force. For example, if the lease requires that you cut the grass every two weeks, you are
still required to do so.
If you and whoever owns the building at any future point in time cannot make an
agreement (for staying or for leaving) which you willingly choose the honor, the owner will
initiate eviction as the only legal method to require that you live elsewhere. If the lease is
still in force, the eviction can only be based on non-payment of rent or breach of a lease
provision (This is why you want to continue to cut the grass.). If your lease expires (by
length of time or by foreclosure action in some states), you will be a tenant at will. Check
our page with FL law. Without going into detail, it looks like the eviction process takes
somewhere around 30 days, although there are many exceptions to this broad statement.
So, wait until someone starts the eviction process. You then have about a month. The
issue of the landlord’s Chapter 7 does not change the need to use the eviction process to
legally get you to vacate. After the lease expires, you can move elsewhere or continue to
stay as you so choose, as long as you give proper notice if you vacate
Regardless of where the landlord kept your deposit, he is trying to do right by you.
Allowing you to skip January’s rent as a return-of-deposit method, may get the landlord in
hot water with his other bankruptcy creditors. That’s his problem. Take his offer.
Other than being aware that a new owner may want the building vacant for some personal
reason (they want to move in?), changing owners ultimately makes no difference to you. If
the new owner is an investor, he’ll probably want a new security deposit. Your situation is
pretty much like any other tenant’s when the current owner sells to someone new. While
the Chapter 7 process will generate some excitement, your status is really quite normal.
Only a court order can finally push you out the door. You should, initially,
plan on
staying for the remainder of your lease. (>and it expires Feb. 1st.)
In a few to as many as some states, a lease automatically terminates when a
foreclosure
occurs. A FL attorney can tell you whether this happens in your state. If the
building is
sold to another normal owner or if a foreclosure does not terminate a lease, the
lease must
be honored by the new owner regardless of any purchase deal made with the
current
owner.
In a like manner, as long as the lease is not terminated (and then becomes the
rental
agreement after the end of the lease period), your responsibilities per the
lease remain in
force. For example, if the lease requires that you cut the grass every two
weeks, you are
still required to do so.
If you and whoever owns the building at any future point in time cannot make an
agreement (for staying or for leaving) which you willingly choose the honor, the
owner will
initiate eviction as the only legal method to require that you live elsewhere.
If the lease is
still in force, the eviction can only be based on non-payment of rent or breach
of a lease
provision (This is why you want to continue to cut the grass.). If your lease
expires (by
length of time or by foreclosure action in some states), you will be a tenant at
will. Check
our page with FL law. Without going into detail, it looks like the eviction
process takes
somewhere around 30 days, although there are many exceptions to this broad
statement.
So, wait until someone starts the eviction process. You then have about a
month. The
issue of the landlord’s Chapter 7 does not change the need to use the eviction
process to
legally get you to vacate. After the lease expires, you can move elsewhere or
continue to
stay as you so choose, as long as you give proper notice if you vacate.
As long as you know who owns the building, you should pay your rent. If there
comes a
time when the name of the actual owner is unclear, put your rent in a savings
account.
That way, if an owner does surface and wants his rent, you’ll have it on the
side already waiting. One situation that may sometimes work in your favor is if the mortgage
company becomes the owner. Some companies try to manage a property like any other
normal landlord. Some companies don’t give a hoot about what happens while they own it
they try to resell the property as quick as they can. Ask around and see if you can
catch a clue about the company that holds the current mortgage. If they are lackadaisical in
their management practices, you get to make a moral decision as to how you choose to
behave.