As Cleveland renters deal with predatory, negligent out-of-state landlords, cleveland city council plans a $1M push to help tenants

It was a gray, drizzly morning in November, and in the parking lot of a mostly empty building off of S. Moreland Boulevard in the city’s Buckeye-Shaker Square neighborhood, misery was in the air. A group of neighbors, volunteers, and movers were huddled around a U-Haul truck parked in the back of the building in the soggy rain. They had a full two day’s work ahead of them – moving tenants out of this abandoned building, which was in such bad condition the city had ordered it to be immediately vacated.

Tatiana, who didn’t want her last name used because she’s ashamed of her situation, was one of the tenants who was moving out. Holding her baby daughter in her arms, she related how when she first moved into the building at 2910 Hampton Rd., which is owned by Aliarse Holdings LLC, she thought it was nice.

“When we moved here, it was on its way up,” she said. “It was amazing. There was electric in the hallways and all the windows were in.”

In a familiar story, things quickly went south. The property manager soon disappeared and the out-of-state landlord was nowhere to be found. Then utilities were cut off and there was no heat or water. Within a few weeks, she said, thieves and vandals smashed out windows and stole pipes.

“It turned into a complete shitshow,” Tatiana said. “Smokers and crackheads ran through it and tore it up.”

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