Rent Free Forever?

[tommiller1]

I read this scenario in a publication for landlords describing a situation where a tenant could stay in an apartment forever without paying rent.

A Section 8 tenant is supposed to pay $200 a month as their portion of the rent for a 2-bedroom apartment in the city of Los Angeles. The tenant is four months behind, but they can’t be served with a 3-day notice until the amount of arrearage exceeds $2,544 (the FMV for a 2-bedroom apartment). At $200 a month, it would take 13 months to exceed that amount. However, there is another California law that states you can’t bring forth an eviction for rent that is owed for more than one year. Based on these two laws, a 3-day notice can never be served.

Can this really be true? Or are the relevant laws being misapplied? Or is this one of those things that’s technically true, but not in the real world because a tenant’s Section 8 portion would never be as low as $200 a month?

 

[LdiJ]

I read this scenario in a publication for landlords describing a situation where a tenant could stay in an apartment forever without paying rent.

A Section 8 tenant is supposed to pay $200 a month as their portion of the rent for a 2-bedroom apartment in the city of Los Angeles. The tenant is four months behind, but they can’t be served with a 3-day notice until the amount of arrearage exceeds $2,544 (the FMV for a 2-bedroom apartment). At $200 a month, it would take 13 months to exceed that amount. However, there is another California law that states you can’t bring forth an eviction for rent that is owed for more than one year. Based on these two laws, a 3-day notice can never be served.

Can this really be true? Or are the relevant laws being misapplied? Or is this one of those things that’s technically true, but not in the real world because a tenant’s Section 8 portion would never be as low as $200 a month?

It is totally possible for a tenant's share of Section 8 housing to be $200 a month. It could be even less in some areas perhaps. Someone else will have to answer about the rest of your question.

 

[adjusterjack]

The moral of the story is never rent to Section 8.

When I had my rentals I was often asked.

My response:

I would have to be Section 8 to take Section 8.

 

[Zigner]

Violating the terms of the lease (by failing to pay the tenant's portion of the rent) would cause the tenant's participation in the program to be terminated.

 

[Taxing Matters]

The moral of the story is never rent to Section 8.

When I had my rentals I was often asked.

In California doing that would put you in violation of the law. It is illegal in that state to discriminate against tenants or tenant applicants who receive section 8 assistance.

 

[Taxing Matters]

I read this scenario in a publication for landlords describing a situation where a tenant could stay in an apartment forever without paying rent.

A Section 8 tenant is supposed to pay $200 a month as their portion of the rent for a 2-bedroom apartment in the city of Los Angeles. The tenant is four months behind, but they can’t be served with a 3-day notice until the amount of arrearage exceeds $2,544 (the FMV for a 2-bedroom apartment).

No, the tenant won't be able to stay there rent free forever. The thing the article you read evidently didn't tell you is that failure of the tenant to pay the subsidized rent will result in the tenant's termination from the program, which means the government doesn't pay the subsidy anymore. At that point the tenant must pay full rent for the place he/she is renting. If the tenant can't do that then they may be evicted from the property like any othe tenant. The CA court system explain this on it's page about Section 8 and rental terminations/evictions. It may take a bit longer to get the Section 8 tenant out because there is extra bureaucracy involved, but the landlord will get them out. And the tenant might not be readmitted to the program if he/she failed to comply with the terms of the program the first time.

 

[tommiller1]

Thanks all. I figured there was an exit ramp but couldn't figure out what it was.