Legal Question in Real Estate Law in New Hampshire
Help Us? Please!
I am the head of a household of 7 people (myself and my wife and five minor children). We have an annual income of 30k. We are currently on a housing assitance program sponsored by HUD and administered by a for profit agency. I currently pay all but a small percentage of my rent. We had a years lease with our current landlord which was up a year ago but continues in effect until such time as either party wishes to break it by giving a 30 day notice to the other. My 3 oldest children are diagnosed with ADHD and are in special programs in the school. We are being evicted by our landlord who is divorcing his wife and wishes to move in and "suck" the equity out of the property so she can not collect any more money from him. We cannot afford an atty to help us and the local legal assitance has refused to help us.I am at my wits end due to the fact that my family is so large and it is impossible for us to find housing in the town that we live in we face homlessness and our children face not finishing this school year. We were assured by this person that we would be in this house for at least five years and have only been here 2. Please help us? It is the middle of the winter and we cannot be forced to leave can we? My children are facing certain trauma and my wife and I are at our wits end! Is there anyone out there with an answer for us? Please help!
3 Answers from Attorneys
New Hampshire eviction
I am not a New Hampshire attorney, but have a couple of suggestions:
1. Talk to the clerk at the local court house and ask them if there is a lawyer referal service for your area. So referral services have reduced fee assistance.
2. Call the law school in New Hampshire (Franklin and Pierce I believe) and ask them if they have a clinical program that allows law students to help in certain cases. YOu might be able to get a student with a real lawyer as a supervisor the help you.
I wish you and your family well. Good luck.
Alan Humbert
New Hamshire Eviction
I do not practice in New Hampshire and have no knowledge of New Hampshire law. It may be that after expiration of the 1 year lease, your tenancy reverted to a month-to-month tenancy, which under Ohio law at least, is terminable by either partyupon 30 days advance notice. If you cannnot afford a lawyer and do not qualify for legal aid, I'm sure that a local library will have some materials on landlord-tenant law. Also, you may want to contact HUD for some assistance. The answer, I suspect, is in the langauge of your lease agreeement. Verbal agreements for five-year lease terms may be unenforcable under the statute of frauds and, as a practical matter, may be difficult to prove. Good luck.
New Hampshire eviction
Unfortunately, I am unfamiliar with New Hampshire law, and, as the other responses to your questions indicate, the eviction laws in New Hampshire will dictate the circumstances under which the landlord may terminate your tenancy. Our office faced a similar situation in Michigan. The HUD office which issued the rent assistance was required to be notified of the eviction. HUD vigorously opposed the eviction on behalf of the tenants. It might be worthwhile for you to contact HUD or the for-profit entity through which the benefits are issued and ask whether they can help. You might also contact a local attorney who practices landlord/tenant law and ask whether New Hampshire provides for an award of attorney fees to the tenant, as some states do.
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