Agreement protects seniors from being evicted.

Byline: Susan Palmer The Register-Guard

A landlord who tried to raise the rent on low-income seniors in a federally subsidized housing complex will no longer be allowed to manage it under a tentative settlement reached with state housing officials on Monday.

Under the terms of agreement, Country Club Manor owner Max Liebreich will not be permitted to interact with the elderly residents, said D. Kevin Carlson, senior assistant attorney general in the state Department of Justice. Liebreich's brother, Howard Liebreich, who co-owns the property, will take over property management, Carlson said. Max Leibreich will be permitted to do grounds maintenance at the Cal Young Road property.

Problems between Max Liebreich and his tenants came to a head at the end of August when he informed them that he had tripled their rent and expected them to pay $630 by Sept. 1.

Liebreich's federal subsidy was cut off this month by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Oregon Housing and Community Services office after years of noncompliance with housing regulations, state and federal housing officials said.

Most of his 20 subsidized tenants could not afford to pay the increased rent. Those who sent in their regular rent checks - between $200 and $260 depending on their incomes - received warning letters that they would be evicted.

The rent increase violated both federal housing regulations and Oregon law, Carlson said. HUD requires landowners of subsidized housing to get approval before raising rents and landlord-tenant laws require 30-day notice before rents can be raised.

Several tenants complained to state officials who distribute the federal funds, and the state intervened.

Under the terms of the agreement, the Liebreichs also must complete maintenance and repairs on the building that previously had been identified as problems by housing officials, repay tenants who paid any excess charges, refrain from moving forward with eviction threats, and notify state housing officials before taking any future eviction actions, Carlson said.

If the Liebreichs comply, they will receive their September and subsequent HUD payments, but any future violations could result in suspended HUD payments that they would not be able to recover, Carlson said.

He expects that the agreement will be signed this week. It will be subject to approval by HUD officials, but they were at Monday's settlement discussions and had no objections at the time, Carlson said.

The Oregon Housing and Community Service office and Howard Liebreich will send a joint letter to tenants about the changes, Carlson said.

Dan Eller, an attorney for the Liebreichs, declined to comment on the settlement and the brothers did not respond to an interview request made through their lawyer.

Tenants contacted on Tuesday about the agreement were cautiously optimistic about the details.

Carole Standish, a 71-year-old tenant who says the stress of the problems at Country Club Manor have made her ill, doesn't think repairs and maintenance on the building can be completed by the Oct. 8 deadline. Among the building maintenance issues are stoves in apartments that don't have hoods or fans, windows that haven't been washed outside in at least two years, and painting in the halls that hasn't been done in 17 years, she said.

Standish worries that people might lack understanding of the circumstances that force senior citizens into subsidized housing.

"It's not people who've been poor all their lives. It's old people who can't work anymore," she said. "They've worked all their lives. They're widowed. Some are drowning in medical bills. ... We have three or four 90-year-olds who do their own laundry, their own shopping, their own housekeeping. They just want to live independently," she said.