VT Renter's Eviction Problem

[ArmyGuyClaude]

Jurisdiction

Vermont

State: Vermont
Facts:
I rent a room in an apartment that is not the landlord's own home. I pay my rent directly to the landlord and not through my roommate. I have a weekly verbal agreement set up with the landlord not monthly and nothing written.

Problem:
My roommate is getting evicted from the premises for failure of payment. And I cannot afford to rent the entire apartment. The landlord is also in the process of selling the building.

Questions:
Do I fall under the same eviction notice that was given to my roommate or do I have to receive my own?
Am I considered a renter or a lodger in this circumstance and what are my rights?
Can the new Landlord remove me from the premises once he owns the building?

Thank you

 

[army judge]

Generally, a renter is protected under federal law from eviction for 90 days, sometimes longer depending on the leasehold.

Your problem is your weekly payment arrangement.
The courts might see you as a lodger, not a renter.
If that's the case, the might not require notice to be removed by the LL, legally of course.

That said, people in your position usually ask to get cash for keys.
For example, make a deal with the landlord to pay you two weeks, or $500 to leave within 48,72 hours; or a certain date, say 1 November.

It's in your best interest to negotiate, don't wait, allowing the LL to get antsy about losing the buyer and the sale. If he starts seeing you as someone likely to cost him money, he might get lawyers and the court involved.

 

[adjusterjack]

Let's name the cast of characters:

Joe: Owns the building and is in the process of selling it.
Bill: Rents an apartment from Joe.
Claude: Rents a room from Bill on an oral agreement to pay rent to Bill.
Jimmy: Rents a room from Bill and is in default and subject to eviction.

Onward to your questions:

"Do I fall under the same eviction notice that was given to my roommate?"

No. Not as long as you still pay your rent to Bill.

"or do I have to receive my own?"

I don't see where you'd be subject to eviction at all, as long as you keep paying rent to Bill for your room. You have no obligation to make up the difference that Jimmy is not paying.

"Am I considered a renter or a lodger in this circumstance?"

According to the Vermont landlord tenant statute a "tenant" is "a person entitled under a rental agreement to occupy a residential dwelling unit to the exclusion of others."

A "dwelling unit" is "a building or the part of a building that is used as a home, residence, or sleeping place by one or more persons who maintain a household."

Vermont Laws

Based on those two definitions, you are a tenant and it doesn't matter that you are renting a room on a weekly basis because

"In the absence of a written rental agreement, the landlord may terminate a tenancy for no cause as follows: If rent is payable on a weekly basis, by providing actual notice to the tenant of the date on which the tenancy will terminate which shall be at least 21 days after the date of the actual notice."

Vermont Laws

"what are my rights?"

You can determine your rights (and your obligations) by studying the entire landlord tenant statute and by reading the guide that follows:

Commerce and Trade

https://www.cvoeo.org/fileLibrary/file_99.pdf

Can the new Landlord remove me from the premises once he owns the building?

Yes.

"Termination of rental agreement when property is sold. In the absence of a written rental agreement a landlord who has contracted to sell the building may terminate a tenancy by providing actual notice to the tenant of the date on which the tenancy will terminate which shall be at least 30 days after the date of the actual notice."

Vermont Laws

You use the word "apartment" which implies that this is a multi-apartment building. As such, either Bill, his landlord, or the new owner can terminate your tenancy with proper notice any time they want to because you are a "tenant at will."

 

[adjusterjack]

Generally, a renter is protected under federal law from eviction for 90 days, sometimes longer depending on the leasehold.

Are you thinking of the federal Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act? That expired Dec 31, 2014 and hasn't been extended as far as I know. Also, as far as I know, there was no federal law giving 90 days to tenants after a sale.

According to Vermont's statute, the new owner need only give 30 days notice of termination to a "tenant at will."

 

[army judge]

Are you thinking of the federal Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act? That expired Dec 31, 2014 and hasn't been extended as far as I know. Also, as far as I know, there was no federal law giving 90 days to tenants after a sale.

According to Vermont's statute, the new owner need only give 30 days notice of termination to a "tenant at will."

Yes, I was referencing that law.
In practice, it was applied to tenants.
Many purchasers are amenable to negotiating, rather than litigating.

As far as citations in small claims or landlord tenant actions, it's like traffic court.

Those courts are more informal, and many times you see a referee or some type of administrative law judge, rather than a judge.

The overseer lets people talk, acting more like a mediator than a judge.

If someone tried citing laws and precedent in a JP court, it wouldn't go over well.


In Texas for example, these matters are overseen by elected justices of the peace. These JPs don't have to be lawyers. Most are just layperson's elected by their community to administer justice in small matters.