Before President Obama signed the housing law last week, renters were often found being thrown out of a home when their landlord was foreclosed on. Since Miami is almost ground zero for foreclosures, renters need to be cautious when renting in Miami and inform themselves of the protections that are buried in the new housing law.
- Many homes and condos in Miami are currently listed on the MLS for both rent and sale.
- Some of these are short sales which means the seller owes more money on the mortgage than the property is worth.
- These properties often have owners who are experiencing financial difficulties.
- If you rent one of these properties, the landlord does not have to use your rent to pay the mortgage and, in many cases doesn’t.
- Have your Realtor check the tax rolls to see if there are currently any liens or lis pendens on the property. Although no guarantee that your landlord will not be foreclosed on for the duration of your lease, at least you will know if they are already in the process.
Before the protections in the housing law were put into place, many tenants would find themselves out of a home with little savings to cover moving costs, which are usually first and last month’s rent plus one month’s rent for security deposit. When the landlord is foreclosed on, there is little recourse for the renter to try to collect their deposit and last month’s rent since foreclosure terminates the lease. New protections include:
- Tenants with lease can stay in property for the remainder of the lease and 90 days thereafter.
- Tenants without a lease (month-to-monthers) will have 90 days.
