Tom

City: 
Los Angeles
Residence Type: 
detached
Landlord Type: 
Private Landlord -- No Rent Control

My wife and I moved into our rental on 6/1/2014. There are two houses on the property.The landlord/owner lives in a large house at the front and we live in a small house in the rear. One day in early March
we came home to find a notice on the front gate
stating that a foreclosure auction was scheduled to
be held On March 30th. We asked the owner what
was up. He said not to worry, that it would all be
cleared up before then. Two weeks ago, the
landlord came to us and said there was an appraisal
scheduled for the next day and that we would have
to make our house appear that it was only used for
storage as there was no permit for occupancy. The
property is zoned r1. They said they were putting the
property in their mothers name (she lives on the
property and is 84 years old) and attempting to get a
reverse mortgage. They have not made a mortgage
payment since before we moved in although we
have paid our rent on time each month and are
currently paid up until March 31. The first appraisal
was too low for them to qualify for the reverse
mortgage and they have scheduled another
appraisal for tomorrow. I dont think it will help and
that the foreclosure sale will occur as scheduled in
five days. So far the notice on the gate is our only
notification of this foreclosure. I suspect that the
lender doesnt even know of our existence or that
they have been collecting rent from us all the while
not paying their mortgage. We are not prepared to
move and internet research tells me that we deserve
90 days notice at some point. I also suspect that
the utilities are about to be shut off due to
nonpayment. They are expecting a rent payment
from us on April 1st.They may not even own the
property by then. I believe that a non payment of
rent would negate any rights we may have in this
matter. We learned from the notice that the
mortgage is held by a credit union. Assuming the
property is sold in foreclosure, my questions are:
What are our rights? Who is liable? Are we entitled to
any advanced notice? Can we get any relocation
assistance from the credit union or the new owners?
If we do have the right to stay, who pays the utilities
as they were included in the rent? Can we be made
to move immediately since there is no certificate of
occupancy? Should we pay the rent April first and to whom? All of this is quickly coming to a head and
we have taken no action not knowing what to do. Can anyone please advise us. What are our options. What is the prudent thing to do?

Help build power for renters' rights: