CLEVELAND — According to northeast Ohio housing experts, tenant/landlord disputes are a growing problem, leading to 9,000 evictions in Cleveland in 2018.
News 5 is responding to this expanding problem through its "A Better Land" initiative, hosting the "Tenant Landlord Tug of War" phone bank on Feb. 4.
News 5 will have a team of housing and legal experts from Cleveland Housing Court, the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland and the Cuyahoga Land Bank, taking tenant/landlord phone calls, starting on Good Morning Cleveland at 6 a.m. and lasting all day.
Experts will also be taking questions on news5cleveland.com throughout the day. The phone bank will cover a wide variety of housing subjects including; right to counsel, housing court mediation, the sealing of old eviction records and the housing court walk-in clinic.
Cleveland Housing Court Judge Ron O'Leary told News 5 the number landlords and tenants using court mediation is growing and it's having an impact in reducing evictions.
Housing attorneys, like Ed Kasputis, said arbitration is a powerful tool, but landlords and tenants must show up to housing court to workout a settlement.
"A lot of times under the law, it's black and white, did you pay your rent, or get out," Kasputis said. "With the mediation program you can be creative where it's a win-win."
"Before court starts, I'll talk to people to say, 'can we work this out,' and if we can, I always advise my clients, whether it's a landlord or a tenant, let's mediate."
The News 5 Tenant Landlord Tug of War phone bank will take calls from 6 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 4.
