illegal evictions

[eric]

My landlord claims to be the owner of the house i am renting.I do not believe this is the case.A diferrent name appears on the tax bill,morgage statement and homeowners insurance.When i confronted her about this she said that an ederly lady used to live in the house,got very ill so she took her in and she supposely left her the house when she passed away.This was over 10 years ago and nothing was transfered to her name.Now she is trying to evict me.Can she legally evict me?What are my rights?

[Zamindar]

This person, as your landlord has the right to evict you regardless of their status as owner. This is the same issue when a tenant sublets an apartment, they then are both landlord and tenant but as a landlord they have to follow the same rules as any other landlord. In the situation you describe they very well could have inherited the property and are still managing it as an estate in the deceased name. They are not mandated to change the name unless they do indeed transfer ownership. This is irrelevant to your situation though. You can be evicted, and your rights are no different than any other tenant facing an evection. Your rights and what you can do to stop it depend upon the reasons for the eviction, which you have not stated.

[TenantNet]

Of course it depends on the laws of the state and municipality (this being the beyond NY section). But generally (at least in NY) Zamindar is incorrect. Only the building owner has "legal standing" to seek possession (evict). Managing agents and employees do not, nor do friends of landlords or other ambiguous relationships. Here, it's important to see who owns the building - if the original owner is dead, then the estate of the owner (through the executor) may have transferred it to this person alleging to be the LL, but maybe they didn't, especially as none of the documents reflect that. If the person works for the estate, the estate still has to be listed as the owner in any suit seeking possession. There are some limited exceptions, such as a 'net lease' where one leases the entire building, or in coop situations. If not under rent regulation, any reason for eviction is irrelevent.