Barb Lickness describes a common scenario: ""Gramma" used her section 8 certificate to rent the house across the street from me came with a personal recommendation from the section 8 worker herself.
When she got her eviction notice after several police calls to the property did that make her straighten up and keep her grandkids in check? No. The "gangster" behavior escalated. Between the 1st of June and now there was a fight in the street involving over 26 men, the gunfight at the O.K. corral last Thursday and the drug raid yesterday and threats on my house from her and her grandkids. On top of that she maneuvered the legal system to get some kind of paper to try to keep her from having to move out." Vicky here: The landlord in this case, finding nothing wrong with Gramma's application, had no choice but to rent the house to her. He/she would have been sued by Legal Aid for discrimination if he/she had rejected Gramma's application. By the time this poor landlord gets rid of Gramma and her extended family, the eviction costs will exceed $5,000, not counting property damage and unpaid rent, if any. The house will probably go into foreclosure, depending on how deep the landlord's pockets are and how much more agony he or she is willing to endure. The landlord did not rent to criminals. Gramma was a shill. This scam has happened to me more than once: A woman applies for the apartment/house. Her credit and criminal histories are blank, therefore there is no LEGAL justification to deny the application. Shortly after she takes possession, several "cousins" or "grandkids" or "brothers" show up, usually from Chicago. Then, the nightmare begins. Barb has described the rest of the story. This scenario is why most private housing providers have left Minneapolis - only publicly subsidized landlords can afford to withstand the financial losses - at a heavy cost to Minneapolis taxpayers. I sold my apartment buildings two years ago and have found it cheaper and safer to board up the handful of remaining residential units. By the end of this year, all of my Minneapolis property will have been sold. The landlord in Barb's case did everything by the book, but got no help from the Police, the City, or the Courts -- despite paying double the property taxes of equivalent homestead property. Vicky Heller North Oaks and Cedar-Riverside REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
