Being Sued by SLUMLORD for breaking my lease due to breach of warranty of habitabiliy

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glenny24

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1. On 08/09 me and husband (and 2 small children) signed a 1 yr lease for an apt (09/09-09/10) Paid broker fees. All transactions and communicatons were made through the broker who advised was also the Super for the bld.
2. Discovered super was "actual" bldg owner and landlord at one point but signed Power of attorney to her biological son who is now the landlord. Also discovered super who acted as a licensed real estate agent had license terminated on 12/08. She advised will have to take her to court because she was not returning money nor proving she has license when she accepted broker fee.
3. on 3/10 Filed action against landlord & super for inadequate heat since moving in sept. was not recieving proper heating, just randomly but case was closed because super was stealing my mail and did recieve court documents which were sent to me.
4. On 3/30/10 sent very detailed letter via certified mail return reciept to landlord/super giving 30 day notice of terminating lease due to "breach of the warranty of habitability"
5. Now a yr later landlord is suing us for "breaking lease" along with a late fee for each month and lawyer fees

F.Y.I- Super was arrested by the city Department of Investigation on charges of fraudulently being the recipient of public benefits while concealing her income.

What should my counter claim be? She has hired a lawyer and is acting as the agent for her son (the actual landlord who is an NYPD officer) how can I have him subpoena in court? He is witness to the complaints we have made against his mom.
I have all of my documentations (lease/history of 311 complaints/ rent receipts/ actual letter from agent requesting broker fee/
I urgently need help, also suing her for my brokers fee!

Requested a "certified license history" on her. She has been an absolute nightmare.
 
If your reason for breaking this lease was due to your claim of habitability, this is what you need to prove in court to justify such.

The fact that the Super was arrested for something that has nothing to do with this lawsuit plays no role in any of this.

Gail
 
Thanks Gail but what should my counter claim be, "Breach of the warranty of habitability?" Also, can I claim rmoney in my counter claim for pain and suffering?
How about the fact that she collected a brokers fee without being an actual broker (I have substantial evidence to prove this)
What role can this play in my case?
Thanks in advance!!!
 
Yes, since your reason for breaking this lease is due your claim that the rental unit was uninhabitable, this is your counterclaim. And yes, you can certainly bring up that she collected a brokers fee without actually being a broker.

Pain and suffering for what? Stay away from this one. A judge is likely to ask you if you and your family suffered so much, how come you didn't make this a legal issue until you were filed against. This makes it look like you're simply tossing everything you can think of (except for the kitchen sink) at the court and the court tends to see such things as a waste of time for them.

Gail
 
Noted will not pursue pain and suffering....
I just have one FINAL question: Since the super is acting as the agent in this case. Is it wise to subpoena the acutal landlord (her son) to court? The reason for me asking is because after she failed to act accordingly, I directed all complaints/issues to him and stopped all communcation with her. Also, his signature is on the lease and he is well aware of his mothers disturbing ways. Was wondering if having him appear in court will hurt or help my case.
 
You can have the landlord come, but he will most certainly stick up for mom.

The claim against you sounds bogus. They can't just claim 5 months of unpaid rent and late fees against you. You will need to find out how soon after you left they rented the place to someone else, or whether they even made an effort. if they didn't try to rent it then you just might be off the hook. If they did rent it then you might be responsible for rent from the time you left to the time someone else came in. This is only if your argument of habitability falls flat.

It sounds like the landlord is going to have a big mess to explain and you might be ok. As said above, don't bring up things that have nothing to do with this matter- it will only make you look bad.
 
Tks for your reply Mighty Mouse!

When we left we literally moved in next door and she did try to rent apt immediatley.
I have a heating log which I kept of the days we did not have heat. We have all the 311 complaints which were made against her. Also we provided her with 30 day notice, via certified return reciept mail detailing ALL of the factors and reasons we were moving. ALSO! I filed a case against her in tentant housing court but she did not show up! I have record of all. We also did not have hot water for a few days because she failed to pay utility bill.
The fact that she represented herself as a "Licensed Real Estate Agent" when she was not should play a big role, correct? We also have proof that she deposited the "broker fee" into her own personal account!
I have requested a certified history of her license from the dept of state licensing, which will also prove she did not have her license. I have reported her to dept of licensing and she is being investigated and they confirmed she was not licensed.
We have records of all our claims against her! Just given my experience with the court system with this case, I hope there will be no loop hole to cause the judge to find us guilty!
Looking forward to your thoughts!!!!
 
The log of your problems is certainly helpful. What is better is if you can say you provided the landlord written notice of those problems.

From what you describe, I wouldn't be surprised if she is a no-show again. She probably hopes you will pay up with the threat of court, but if she knows you have done some homework she might just stay away.

Bottom line, don't pay a penny unless a judge tells you to.
 
Tks Moose but unfortunetly I do not have proof that I sent landlord written notice (although I acutally did!)
I am 150% sure she WILL show up to court and she hired a lawyer. Her lawyer does not have all the facts nor has any real clue of character, I guess this is my only real hope and the fact that she waited 9 mths to file this claim. Why wasnt it filed immediately upon us "breaching our lease" in April if she was not at fault???
This is so fustrating!!! :(
 
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