Hi, new to this forum and I haven't seen this asked anywhere else. My landlord brought a nonpayment petition against me. I had very good defenses and I was willing to fight the case all the way to trial if I had to. However, my court appointed free lawyer talked me into signing a stipulation. While I promised myself I wouldn't do that, I am out of work and he said if I agreed, I would likely get help paying the arrears and ALSO having my rent paid going forward via CityFheps, because my father lives with me and is a Veteran. We agreed to make the payments by a certain date. Stipulation didnt mention I would apply for help, just that I would pay, but the lawyer said didnt it have to mention that. It said if I defaulted the landlord could "restore the case to calendar with 8 days notice to my attorney to obtain a judgment and warrant of eviction."
The stip gave us 2 months to pay which he said would be more than enough time for them to provide the payment for me. 2 months later, I am still getting bounced back and forth by HRA.
My question is this: If the HRA provides the payment AFTER the date on the stipulation (which is only days from today), would the case be over so long as the payment was received? Could the landlord refuse to accept my payment, because I didn't pay by the date on the stipulation and move to evict me anyway? I have heard that as long as you pay before the marshal comes, you can avoid eviction, but does the fact that I signed a stipulation change that? I wish I hadn't, but the lawyer made me feel very comforted at the time.
I was hoping for confirmation that, even if the money came a little late, the landlord still has to accept it and my home would be safe.