Sunday, November 25, 2012

Low Income Tenants Face Pre-Xmas Boot As New Landlord Announces Renovation Plans For Premises


In Fort Lauderdale, Florida, WTVJ-TV Channel 6 reports:

  • Residents at a Fort Lauderdale apartment building have 20 days to find a new home. "It's rough, Christmas coming, Thanksgiving coming, and we got to get out on Dec. 1," Robert Newkirk told NBC 6 South Florida.

    Newkirk and other residents received a letter from the new owner of the apartments, located near Broward Blvd. and Interstate-95, telling them to be out by the first of the month. "We are animals to them, and we get kicked out like a dog," said Chester Goode.

    Goode has lived in the building for about 12 years. The Florida Asset Network sent a letter in Sept. saying it was a pleasure to notify residents of new ownership, but the tone of a letter six weeks later was absent of niceties.

    "We do have a veteran living here on the property -- one of Uncle Sam's men -- how do you think he feels?" Goode asked. He and the others don't have leases, but some are seniors citizens and all are low income.

    "If we would've had more time, you could've saved a little bit of money and then try to get you another place to stay and stuff like that, but other than that there's nothing we can do," Newkirk said.

    The building is on a boulevard once notorious for drugs and crime, in which millions of dollars have been spent sprucing it up. Residents understand the plan to renovate the building, but not the 20 days to get out. "This is the first year in 59 years I will not have a Christmas for this situation, and it's not fair to me," Goode said.
Source: Fort Lauderdale Apartment Residents Have 20 Days to Find a New Home (Chester Goode told NBC 6 South Florida he feels he's getting kicked out like a dog).

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