Among the 11,000 San Francisco Bay Area homes repossessed in 2007 are hidden statistics — the number of renters quickly evicted following their landlords’ fall from grace.
No one knows how many renters have been shown the door, but the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the number is “high.”
One housing counselor told the newspaper that it has become a “common problem,” while the Oakland city attorney’s office has heard “a ton of anecdotes” about such evictions, according to a neighborhood legal advocate.
Efforts to strengthen tenants’ rights have been stymied at the state level.
Meanwhile, some lenders are said to speed up the eviction process by telling tenants in foreclosed properties that they no longer have to pay rent — and then serve them eviction notices for nonpayment several months later.
New legal remedies are in the works, but advocates say tenants need to learn about their rights if they are to successfully hold off eviction.
Source:
“Foreclosures leave renters in the lurch”
San Francisco Chronicle, February 7, 2008
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