Q: Tenant abandonment, rent nonpayment. He came by recently and got his things already. Now he is harassing me.
Hi, I'm a landlord of a condo. The tenant has not paid rent 2 months and has abandoned, leaving apt in filth and broken parts. He did return recently to get his things. NOBODY lives in there and he says doesn't have keys anymore. Now he just harassed me yesterday trying to pull a scam, claiming I took some things when he was literally there to retrieve them & threatening 6 months apt being vacant from possible court process. I'm out of a few thousand from his nonpayment but importantly I want him to just stop harassing since he moved out already on his own and lives elsewhere for a few months. I want to repair up the apt to rerent it to new people. How to proceed to protect me as a landlord? TIA.
A:
Dear Great Neck Condo Owner
At least the tenant clued you in to the possibility of legal problems. Your tenant likely has more experience in Court than you do.
Abandonment is not a recognized ground in NY for a landlord to enter into rented premises. Rather the landlord has a right stated in the existing lease to terminate the tenancy on the facts of Abandonment seek a lawful eviction in the local tenant and landlord court.
Best suggestion is consult a local lawyer and nip this in the bud. You want to rent out your unit again as soon as possible and your tenant who lives elsewhere is currently claiming legal possession.
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