Foreclosure Effect on Renters

Published: Monday, July 14, 2008 3:49 PM PDT

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I've been meaning to post this stat for a while.

One-quarter of all foreclosed single-family homes in the state are occupied by renters, the California Apartment Association estimates.

I'm trying to track down how they came up with that number to see if we can make a similar estimate locally. And I'm working on a story this week about the impact of foreclosures on renters. If you have any questions or if you're a tenant affected in some way by foreclosure, send me an e-mail at kelly.bennett@voiceofsandiego.org. I told you about some tenants in a story a couple of years ago who figured as long as their landlord was still paying for their grass to be cut, they were OK.

I caught Carlsbad eviction attorney James Burmeister on the phone this afternoon. When a house is repossessed and is still lived in by the owner, Burmeister only has to give the owner three days to leave the house.

But that time period widens significantly when the foreclosed houses have tenants living in them. That time period used to be 30 days. But with a new law signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last week, eviction attorneys now have to give tenants 60 days' notice before they have to vacate the house.