Just found this thread here today and created an account to post. All, I feel so sorry to hear about each of your situations. Even though landlords across the country are suffering, there is so little media out there that sympathizes with what we're going through. Not all of us are rich enough that we can forego months' to years' of rent and still stay afloat, and we're definitely not greedy for defending our right to the use of our property. The government has essentially shoved the burden of homelessness on our shoulders, promising that we will get paid eventually, but they're not considering how costly, emotionally tolling, and time-consuming it will be when we have to sue for back-rent in civil court...all the while knowing that, realistically, we have little chance of getting anything back if the subtenants "can't pay" or are judgment proof. My mom's rental situation is taking a huge emotional toll on her, so my siblings and I are looking for solutions and are interested in joining any class action lawsuits against the right entity. There is power in numbers, and we want to stand up for our rights.
Our situation began before the eviction moratorium, and we've felt really trapped for months. My mom is a landlord in LA and relies on rental income from a few small residential properties. In February 2020, the tenants in a unit on a lot she lives on vacated per a 60-day notice, after my mom discovered they've been subletting the house to internet strangers without her consent, violating the lease agreement. The notice to vacate included all the Jane and John Does currently residing in the property but, unfortunately, the unauthorized subtenants did not leave. They've been avoidant, unwillingly to communicate with us/disclose their names in the beginning, and hid whenever they saw my mom. While they apparently only subletted the back room from the previous tenants, they now occupy the whole house freely without paying any rent, and we've been unable to file an unlawful detainer due to the eviction ban even though we posted the notice in mid-February.
Due to the eviction ban that just keeps getting extended, our lawyer suggested we try offering cash for keys since my mom is suffering emotionally living on the same lot as these people. We offered a generous $3k to help with rent and moving costs, since they apparently only subleased the single back room for $900/month ($2,X00/month for whole house). They asked for more—$15k to be exact, after not even being authorized to live there and or bothering to work things out with us all year; apparently, the John Doe in the house has PTSD and just finished dialysis (neither of which we knew since they never talked to us!), and we caused emotional distress to him via this ordeal, so they deserve more for emotional distress. When we responded empathetically to his situation and tried negotiating up to $5k, they said no and shared they will now also be going after my sister for "intimidation". Apparently, when my sister parked in the driveway when visiting my mom, she revved her engine too loud and honked at her to intimidate her (according to my sister, she did no such thing and I believe her—we are adults). This is clearly extortion on their part because they know they can live rent-free without being evicted for months and will only leave for $15k. We are now preparing to foot costly lawyer fees ($10k+ according to our lawyer's experience with difficult cases like this), and likely won't see a cent back since we have so little information about these people and they may not have anything to lose.
My heart goes out to everyone who is truly struggling due to the pandemic and are, in earnest, doing their best to be responsible tenants by communicating with their landlords and trying to work things out. The people we are dealing with are definitely not such people. This entire eviction moratorium is truly very unfair to landlords dealing with people who are abusing the system, and my family would like to help fight for what's just if we can.