09/18/2022
Zona Properties, Inc.
www.zonaproperties.com
AN UPDATE ON NYS RENT PROGRAM COLLECTIONS, EVICTIONS AND COLLECTING ON PAST EVICTED TENANTS
BACK RENT REIMBURSEMENT
Hard work pays off! There have been several programs that have been coming out from the government to help landlords recoup some of the money lost as a result of the pandemic over the past several years. As I reported earlier we immediately jumped on applying for these funds on behalf of our clients and have been successful in getting our owners much of the back rent that they were owed. One of the first programs to come out was a NYS LRAP program that allowed landlords to apply for help after providing extensive documentation of rent loss. From this program we collected over $300,000 for our clients. A second program that came out was a NYS ERAP program which was designed for tenants to apply for back rent. We encouraged, cajoled and did everything we could to get our tenants to begin the application process and worked with them to assist in filling out the paperwork and providing the documentation needed. We helped finish many, many applications and have been waiting for months to see any money from the state from this program. Well it is finally coming in. Over the past several weeks we have received quite a few individual checks for tenants in the amounts of $8,000, $6,000 and upwards of $10,000-$15,000 each for our owners. We are constantly monitoring the status of outstanding applications and hope to secure much more for our owners.
EVICTION ISSUES
Evictions have still been frustrating. Previous to the pandemic we were able to get into court within two to four weeks of filing. Now the three day notice has been eliminated and we are forced to serve 14 day notices instead. This is one of many things that delay the process. Once we get in court judges, prompted by legal aid attorneys, are requiring tenants to apply for the NYS ERAP funds, or if they have already applied, judges postpone the proceedings to see how the application turns out. Again another way to stall the eviction process. With all of this going on we are being very meticulous in making sure that all of our T’s are crossed and I’s dotted so that there are no additional reasons to delay the process.
BACK RENT JUDGEMENTS COMING IN
Another bit of good news for some of our clients is the stepped up activity by our collection company. When we do get a judgement for owed rent we work with a collection agency who starts the process of trying to collect the money. A lot of time clients don’t realize how involved this process turns out to be as the agency works with our office to gather information, searches public records for the judgements, searches databases to find current addresses and if the tenant is working hiring an attorney to prepare papers to secure a wage assignment and serving the papers on the tenants employer. We have always been receiving payments periodically but over the last five or six months the agency has provided stacks of paperwork on past tenants. Not all of this results in collecting owed money but several clients have seen funds in their monthly checks from rents they thought were lost forever.
Richard Zona
Zona Properties, Inc.
P.O. Box 17937
Rochester, NY 14617
Real Estate Management since 1993
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