Protecting the Rights of Tenants and Homeowners

Shortly after the 2008 recession, during the collapse of the national housing market, we saw the number of foreclosures skyrocket. Homeowners were pushed from their houses. Tenants were given little over a week to move if a new owner bought their rental property in a foreclosure sale. It was a devastating time for many individuals and families. It also opened many lawmakers’ eyes to how the current system is rigged against tenants and homeowners.

I’ve filed a handful of measures to rectify that issue. Senate Bill 181 changes the notice of requirement that a new owner must give to a tenant following a foreclosure sales from 10 business days to vacate the premises to 90 days. This will give renters more time to find new housing arrangements.

Currently, there are two ways foreclosures are handled:  judicially and non-judicially. In judicial foreclosure cases, the borrower resolves the debt through the court system. This gives them certain legal protections, and ensures that the process is handled fairly and, most importantly, legally. Non-judicial foreclosures, however, allow banks to correspond directly with the borrower, and, barring payment of the debt, eventually results with the sheriff possibly auctioning the house from the court steps. Non-judicial foreclosures were primarily used in the lawsuits that were filed against major banks after 2008 for the way they handled foreclosure proceedings.

Senate Bill 183 would require all foreclosure proceedings to be handled judicially. The legislation makes sure these proceedings are handled in court, where they belong, and that the rights of all parties, not just the borrowers, are protected.

Additionally, I’ve filed legislation that would make it easier for tenants whose deposits were unfairly kept to recover the money. Senate Bill 309 expands the amount of damages a tenant can recover from a landlord who wrongfully held any portions of the security deposit. The measure also requires landlords to keep all security deposits in a separate bank account. However, any interest earned on the deposit would belong to the landlord.