Landlord Didn't Comply with HUD Regulations

Landlord sued to evict Section 8 tenant from HUD-regulated housing for fraud. Based on information contained in a letter received from HUD's Office of the Inspector General, landlord claimed that tenant concealed Social Security income by not disclosing it in her annual income recertification forms. Tenant asked the court to dismiss the case, claiming that landlord didn't follow HUD regulations before starting the case. The court ruled for tenant. Contrary to HUD regulations, landlord failed to conduct any pretermination investigation, didn't notify tenant in writing of the suspected fraud, wasn't represented by someone not involved with the review of the supposedly fraudulent information when it met with tenant, and didn't give tenant a written final decision on its proposed action before starting the court proceeding.

Kingsbridge Court Assoc. v. Hamlette: NYLJ, 12/23/09, p. 26, col. 1 (Civ. Ct. Bronx; Madhavan, J)