Can I be eveicted if I paid cash to buy my interest in this cooperative?
Full Question:
Answer:
The term cooperative apartment is usually treated as synonymous with a tenant-owned apartment corporation. The residents own the stock (or memberships in the case of non-stock corporations) of the corporate owner of the building and pay monthly or other periodic sums for their appropriate shares of financing costs, taxes, maintenance, upkeep, and other proper expenses. Cooperative apartments are different from a condominium. An apartment cooperative will typically be a corporation renting apartments to people who are also owners of stock in the corporation. The apartment complex is owned by the corporation.
There are two types of eviction procedures. In a dispute on rental payment, the landlord must first demand the rent in person or send a notice demanding payment within three days. Next the landlord initiates court proceedings by serving two legal documents: a petition, which lists his claims, and a notice of petition, which informs the tenant when and where he must respond.
The petitions must not be ignored, and the tenant must appear at the housing court within five days. A lawyer may not be necessary for this first court appearance, as the clerk of court will counsel tenants on their rights. At this initial meeting, a court date is set, usually within the next 10 days. If the tenant doesn't reply to the notice, the landlord can apply for a default judgment and issuance of a warrant of eviction, which authorizes a marshal to take possession of the dwelling and return it to the landlord.
Until the warrant is issued, the tenant can pay the judgment and court costs and the landlord must accept it, stopping the eviction. But after the warrant is issued the landlord has the option of not accepting the rent. If it isn't paid in time or the landlord refuses a late payment, he hires a marshal to serve the warrant, which gives the tenant 72 hours to vacate or be physically removed. If a judge awards the landlord a judgment the tenant usually must pay it within five days, or a warrant of eviction is issued.
In ''holdover'' cases, the landlord says the tenant is remaining after the expiration of the lease, either a stated date in the lease or, more often, after the tenant has violated a clause in the lease. The procedure , stated in the lease, usually involves two steps. First, the landlord sends a notice of violation, giving the tenant a certain amount of time, as specified in the lease, to ''cure the fault.'' If t he tenant does not satisfy the landlord's demands, the landlord serves a second notice ending the lease. At this point, the tenant is considered a ''holdover.''
Then the landlord serves a petition and a notice of petition. Since a holdover proceeding is a great threat to a tenant's occupancy, it is imperative to hire a lawyer, according to most tenant advocates. If the tenant does not show up in court, the landlord wins the case by default. After defaulting, a tenant may or may not be given a chance to cure the fault and regain legal possession, depending on the severity of the problem and the judge's discretion. The tenant is usually ordered to move out by a certain date, usually within one to three months. This period is often extended if the tenant shows that he has been unable to find a new home.
There are some organizations that may be able to help you. Tenants in rent-stabilized apartments may want to consult the Conciliation and Appeals Board at 265-5920, or tenants in rent controlled apartments may get in touch with the Rent Control Board at 566-5054. The New York City Bar Association gives referrals by telephone: 575-1810. The Metropolitan Council on Housing gives advice, locations of local tenants' organizations and names of lawyers. Call 598-4900. Individuals who earn less than $5,388 and families with four members earning less than $10,563 may get in touch with the Legal Aid Society at 577-3300 or Community Action for Legal Services at 431-7200 for free legal service.