Daniel Gershburg

With the ever changing debt markets, many of our clients across Brooklyn and Manhattan have been asking this question more and more: Can Mel S. Harris or Rubin and Rothman or Pressler and Pressler put a lien on my house?  The answer is yes, they can.  And they are doing it more and more.  There are reasons and, as always, ways to fight back.

If you owe money to Mel. S Harris (or, I should say, if Mel. S. Harris claims you owe them money) they have numerous ways of getting that money from you.  They can, as they typically do,  freeze your bank account.  That’s always nice. They can also try and garnish your wages….provided you’re actually employed in this crazy economy.  Also, a nice thing.  But, if none of that works, and they still want their money, they can put a lien on your house.  Who cares though, right?  You should.  If you ever want to sell your home you’re going to have to pay the lien off…with interest.  If you ever want to refinance the home, you’re going to have to pay the lien off, with interest.  If you ever wan’t to get a 2nd mortgage on the home, you will have to pay the lien off…with interest.

The point of the above is the point I always make whenever I speak to clients that are dealing with Mel S. Harris and Associates or Rubin and Rothman or Cohen and Slamowitz.  The “ostrich” approach of not dealing with them will never work.  They have six years from the date of alleged default to actually sue you, and another 20 to collect.  So, just because no one has contacted you in a few hours doesn’t mean you’re in the clear at all.  To the contrary, it may mean that interest is accruing on the debt owed.

Again, the simplest solution is to deal with the problem.  Settle.  File Bankruptcy. Contest the Debt.  Any/all of these methods will be more effective and less costly than the alternative.

Jordan Schiller, Esq., a New York City Landlord/Tenant attorney and Of Counsel to our firm answers some of your questions below:

A common question Landlords In New York ask when seeking to evict a Tenant is “how long will the court process take?”:

Depending on the type of tenancy, the answer  in New York varies.  If the apartment is not rent-stabilized and there is no current lease, then the issue is straightforward and the tenant will not have many viable defenses to a holdover eviction proceeding.  After a 30 day notice and Notice of Petition and Petition have been properly served on the tenant, a court date is set.  A tenant is usually entitled to one free adjournment before coming back to court and either agreeing with the Landlord to vacate the New York premises by a date certain or going forward with a trial and having a housing court Judge decide how much time to award the tenant to vacate.  A Judge has the power to award a Tenant up to six months to stay in the apartment, from the date of the commencement of the proceeding.  However, the amount of time depends on the specific circumstances of the situation (i.e. are there kids involved?; is the tenant elderly?; how long was the tenancy?; basis for the eviction?)

Evictions pertaining to a rent-stabilized apartment are more complex and a tenant will naturally have more viable defenses.  Due to the various protections afforded a rent-stabilized tenant and the technicality of this particular area of law, a lawyer who specializes in housing law is essential (WINK).  Landlords of rent-stabilized apartments will either seek an eviction through a non-payment proceeding or a holdover proceeding.  The former is self-explanatory; the tenant has failed to pay their rent and the landlord is seeking their money and possession of the apartment should the tenant be unable to pay.  A holdover proceeding for a rent-stabilized apartment may only be based on specific allegations, pursuant to the rent-stabilization code.  Typically, a landlord may seek to recover an apartment based on owner occupancy, or allegations that the tenant of record is not using the apartment as their primary residence.  As mentioned earlier, a lawyer who specializes in housing law is an essential ingredient to a successful outcome for any landlord.

Countless Bankruptcy cases come through my doors and I’m happy to help.  I learned Bankruptcy, primarily, by doing Pro Bono work for the Brooklyn Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers project.  I still do. It allowed me to hone my skills while also giving me an opportunity to give back to the community.  But, for the most part, what we do is reactionary.  In other words, we help people in New York City file for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy after they ‘ve fallen into the financial pit which they can’t come out of.  It’s too late for them.

For years now, I’ve thought there must be a better way to deal with some of the endemic problems surrounding money management in New York City.  You see, many of us don’t know what “credit” really means.  We don’t understand how, even a 100 point difference in your credit score, can mean the difference between being able to afford a certain home or not.  Or how a judgment on your record can come back to bite you ten years down the line, with interest.  Or how saving money in your 401k from the time you start working, can help you out tremendously down the line.  Or…about spending (COUGH).  And so I began searching for a way to educate people about these common pitfalls.  Simple, small things which we need to learn in order to live better lives.  Literally, better lives.

Over the past several months, we met with a wonderful organization, Pencil.org.  PENCIL teams private businesses with local schools in need of teachers, leadership, hands on training, etc.  We discussed the problems facing children today in education.  And we realized that children were really never taught a thing about saving or investing.  No one explained how compounding interest can make them thousands over their lives, and how important keeping a solid debt/income ratio would be for their college loans. There were too many other issues children faced.   But if we were going to do this, we realized we wouldn’t have been able to do it alone.  We partnered up with The Street Academy for Financial Literacy, where I am a proud Board Member.  Street Academy is a grass roots organization comprised of some of the most dedicated people I know.  Their goal is to educate kids about financial literacy and prepare them for the complex world we live in.  In other words, getting to the problem early.  Teaching proper money habits.  We’re teaching the next generation about the mistakes that many have made, and how to avoid them.  I don’t remember the last time I’ve been so genuinely excited to start a Pro Bono program.  But here we are.  We’re teaching the kids at the NorthStar Academy, in Flatbush, Brooklyn starting next week.  We want to expand the program to various schools around New York.  We want to make a small difference in these childrens lives.  We want to, and will, help in any way we can.

We encourage you to learn more about Pencil.org and The Street Academy for Financial Literacy.