In a sign of the times, a fed-up Queens landlord posted two giant banners calling out his allegedly deadbeat tenants for owing him $17,000 in back rent.
“MY TENANTS ON THE FIRST FLOOR ARE NOT PAYING RENT” read the bold posters slung above the first-floor rental on 175th Street in Springfield Gardens.
Landlords Calvin and Jean Thompson posted the banners — which can be seen from the Belt Parkway — in the hopes of shaming their tenants into paying up. It was also featured in a TikTok video that got more than 14,000 likes — and supportive comments like, “Not paying your bills is ghetto.”
The Thompsons, who are married, have owned the two-family home since 1989. They began the process of trying to evict Marie and Eugene Lamour and their daughter Kathia in Queens Housing Court last month.
But with nearly 200,000 eviction cases pending in the city after pandemic protections and the state’s eviction moratorium created a historic backlog, the landlords see humiliation as the next best tactic.
“The signs are very embarrassing and shameful for them,” said the Thompsons’ son, Calvin Jr. “That’s the only voice we have at this stage: freedom of speech.”
The signs seem to be working: Kathia Lamour tried to cut one sign down, Calvin Jr. claims.
“When she calls Uber, she won’t do it in front of the house anymore,” he said. “She runs to the end of the block, so they don’t see them.
“It’s uncomfortable that we have to hang these up, but we’re $20,000 uncomfortable, so I think a sign is very minor.”
Problems began in July when the Thompsons raised the rent on the Lamours’ three-bedroom pad from $1,800 a month to $1,900, the first rent hike in nine years, according to Calvin Jr.
The Lamours didn’t want to pay the 5% increase. Kathia, who works for the city Department of Social Services and makes $46,731, according to GovSalaries.com, told The Post she tried to drop off $1,800 in rent instead of the new amount, but the Thompsons refused to take it — so she stopped paying altogether.
It's easy to sympathize with Ms. Lamour for standing her ground here, because in her municipal position she's probably very aware of how dangerous the shelters the DSS "runs and monitors" are
16 comments:
Shame on those landlords! They’re refusing to accept rent, taking her for a holdover action.
What makes them think they can jump the line on all the other landlords?
The tenant should put up a banner that says this landlord is a liar and a tax cheat!
It’s interfering with the tenants peaceful enjoyment of the premises- now she doesn’t have to pay any rent at all.
These landlords only screw themselves when they try to self cure.
Dat house fugly.
"The signs are very embarrassing and shameful for them”
Are they kidding?
Deadbeats don't give a shit, everything in the apartment is going to be destroyed.
Good luck in housing court, a judges green light don't mean squat if the sheriff cant throw them out because no shelter is available or that kid is in school.
Hope they get it done buy September before another school year starts.
They gonna be out another $17K by the time the eviction is physically done by the sheriff.
Next the deadbeats are going to blackmail them with cash for keys.
They had this problem next door and used alternate methods with some help from the Albanians. Those knew some professionals that were very good giving deadbeats motivation and it only cost $2000.
To rent now you MUST demand proof of SS# and applicant consent to background, credit & employment checks and proof of secure $60K or more income. Check the prospective renters income tax filing.
If they screw you can wreck their credit, and show up at place of employment.
If the homeowner resides in the home he or she has every right to ask and be discriminative too.
If the prospective tenant "don't like it" they need look elseware and they usually move on to some old honest trusting sucker. Sad its always senior citizens and cheapskates who wont use a broker who knows how to use a computer to do checks the housing scammers target.
NO MERCY FOR THIS SCUM !!
-Ned
www.nra.org
To tell you the truth perhaps whoever lazy or greedy speculator put up (or baught) that ugly "Flushing style" cement ball lined shitter thinking they would make a $$ killing, retire, pay off a mortgage renting 3 apartments deserves what they got.
Hmmm.....Possible apartments in the basement too? (5 or 6 apartments maybe)
Why else would one buy or put up such a box ?
I'm not too sure I feel sorry for them
No Mercy for the Scum? You mean the unethical slumlords, right?
No one is stiffing anyone. What part of the landlords are refusing to accept rent offered don't you get?
Who have the homeowners been voting for all these years for state government?
I wonder, how many of the 200,000 possible evictees are residents of NYCHA?
Over 34% of these tenants are in rent arrears.
Does the city ever evict these deadbeats?
From The NY Times: "A significant number of NYCHA households owe back rent. In November 2021, 68,000 tenants — roughly 42 percent of the households in public housing in New York City — were behind on the rent. That was up from 35 percent in November 2019..."
@“ To rent now you MUST demand proof of SS# and applicant consent to background, credit & employment check”
Funny how right wingers suddenly want more regulation and controls when it suits their agenda.
I owned an apartment building in Queens for 20 years and had only 2 evictions. But, of those 2, one judge, Rios, was top notch and got rid of the deadbeat tenant in a couple of months. That's top speed in liberal nyc. The second tenant, a crackhead that got by my rental agents criminal screening, took about the same amount of time, but the liberal judge that time tried to make out like non paying rent was not the reason and so what. It didn't hold water and out he went. My advice; if you want to be a landlord, don't do it in crime city.
"What part of the landlords are refusing to accept rent offered'
If a landlord accepts partial rent an eviction cant be done.
The deadbeats often offer $500 for a 2000 a month.
This is like the inner city thugs going into Asian bodegas grabbing things off the shelves then screaming "TOO MUCH" should be $8 !!!
Its theft, the only difference is they don't throw $8 on the table and walk away with $40 of beer and grocery's.
A landlord accepting partial rent, sec 8 or government vouchers is suicide. It pre-empts eviction preceding's and the deadbeats know this.
Deadbeats gotta be thrown out before they multiply or the drug, booze, marijuana, gambling or mental problems get worse.
Most these deadbeats are incapable of holding a job, the bullshit with them only gets worse. Especially if the landlord is white and the tenant is black.
The most common 4 lines are now:
"I don't have to pay rent, I'm entitled to live free as reoperations for slavery"
"What's yours is mine too"
"your a racist, I'm not paying you shit GO AHEAD EVICT ME"
"Pay me $20,000 to move and you get your keys"
""Funny how right wingers suddenly want more regulation and controls when it suits their agenda""
No stupid !!
A landlord who lives on the premises has always had the right to discriminate, set the terms and qualifications.
No new controls are needed, if anything its the Woke liberals who want to change this and take away landlords rights.
Like in Norway and Sweden where the social workers bring problem people, mental cases, drug addicts, weirdo's, transvestites, criminals to your home and have you jailed for discrimination and "insensitivity" if you don't smile and hand over the keys to your listed apartment.
The Wokes progressives, NWO nuts would love to see that rammed down out throats at government gunpoint here
@Funny how right wingers suddenly want more regulation and controls when it suits their agenda.
Says the left wing, woke wingnut.
Totally gone with the wing.
Mr.Fantastic said...
@"right wingers suddenly want more regulation and controls when it suits their agenda"
There are "Right Wingers" in NYC ? Really, where ? C'mon Man...
Joe Biden C'mon Man REMIX So Funny
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwoN-FvVEsA
@“ Says the left wing, woke wingnut.
Totally gone with the wing.”
Take a hike, Putinist troll!
A landlord must be paying the above Anonymous.Oh I’m crying for the slumlords of Queens County, just weeping for them! They’re full of crap so bad they invented Crap!
Or must be their idiot lawyers who don’t know the law and attempt to rule by intimidation in the court house hall ways. Good to know Judge Rios is on the bag. Will be happy to forward this to interested parties.
I bet there was no heat or hot water in that Womens apartment ever! Probably full of bed bugs, mold and leaks. Either we wipe out the slum or it wipes us out.
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