CINCINNATI — A grandmother slapped with eviction for not paying rent claims someone is cashing money orders sent to her landlord.
When it rains, brown water drips on carpet inside Ronnette Foggie's apartment home. There is also mold, dirty water bubbled up in her bathroom sink, and pieces of ceiling that have fallen in her family's tub as well. They also have mice, and her grandson caught 30 in two months.
The pests drove the family to move into a $300 per month hotel while paying $710 rent on their apartment.
However, the eviction notice for non-payment bites most.
When asked if she is sure her family pays rent, Foggie said, "I'm paying. I have all my money order receipts."
Her landlord ordered Foggie out over the summer for not paying too. A judge dismissed that complaint, but payment remains an issue.
"Somebody's taking it," Foggie said.
WCPO called the property owner, his investment firm and the lawyer representing the landlord. No one returned messages.
The owner controls Heirlooms of Cincinnati, and a dozen of its tenants in Roselawn are also facing eviction. Several claimed they paid rent.
"It was just mind-blowing really," said Brooke Brovey, a tenant.
Nick DiNardo, counsel for the Legal Aid Society of Greater Cincinnati, said it is not unusual to see renters who pay face eviction.
He said the cases often involve new property owners. With tenants paying through subsidies, new landlords sometimes miss payments because they have not communicated with the payer and the money lands in accounts accessible only to the former landlords, DiNardo said.
"Sometimes it's just the change in the management company," he added. "They go from management company A to management company B (and) a lot of times in those situations management company A was not keeping up with the records and everything else. So when the new company comes in and they think people haven't paid their rent."
Several Heirlooms tenants told WCPO they struggle to get answers from their new landlord.
Heirlooms of Cincinnati belongs to Cincinnati Roselawn LLC, owned by Robert Ritzenthaler, according to Ohio Secretary of State business records. Ritzenthaler is president of REM Capital, a Florida-based real estate investment firm focused on multi-family dwellings, according to the company's website.
REM's logo appears on Heirloom's website. The firm also owns properties in nine states, according to the site. Cincinnati Williamstown LLC, with Ritzenthaler listed as owner, controls one of them, according to Ohio Secretary of State records. Foggie is one of the Williamstown LLC's tenants.
Foggie, a full-time bus driver, is not happy with her living conditions or treatment.
"(It's) hell," she said. "It's ridiculous. This is not livable. Nobody cares."
Foggie makes too much money for free legal aid but not enough to afford her own lawyer, but advocates said she and others have options.
"They can contact the lawyer referral service with the bar association," DiNardo said. "They will refer them to a (lawyer) who will consult with them for, I think, $30 for about a half-hour consultation. The other option is they can represent themselves in the case."
DiNardo encouraged tenants in similar circumstance to call the Legal Aid Society of Greater Cincinnati at 513-241-9400.
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