“I RAN OUT OF PAPER, INK AND PEACE OF MIND”
The realtors became unreachable people for me, somehow, they blocked my hopes of renting an apartment in New York. Since July 11, 2022, when I became homeless, I had no choice but to live in a shelter and ask New York City for financial help to rent an apartment. Due to the lack of competent social workers my case was ignored and by June 11, 2023, I could get my first voucher. To date I have not been able to use it successfully. Most brokers have rejected my applications because landlords don't want to negotiate with the city. Moreover, the lack of collaboration from social workers to update it because it is being issued incorrectly has caused me to lose out on the opportunity to rent an apartment.
THESE ARE THE SITUATIONS WITH BROKERS AND SHELTER STAFF THAT HAVE IMPACTED ON MY SEARCH FOR HOUSING THE MOST.
GRUPO PANTIGA
On June
21, 2023, I went to the building at 3130 GRAND CONCOURSE, Bronx. I
met the superintendent, a friendly man who told me that apartment 4-T was
available for rent. He showed me the apartment, gave me a couch that was in the
living room and handed me an application that I filled out right away. The
superintendent called Mr. Jessy Ureña, broker of the Pantiga Group, minutes
later we met in the basement. When Mr. Ureña found out that I had a voucher and
was living in a shelter, he told the superintendent that the apartment was
already rented. However, I did give him copies of my documents in case he
needed to contact me for another apartment. Later I tried to contact him, but
my calls were never answered.
NYC EMPIRE REALTY- WV REALTY
The misleading of the broker Mr. Hansel Pujols began on August
30, 2023, when the superintendent of the building at 2700 Grand Concourse,
Bronx introduced him to me to help me rent an apartment.
On May 12, 2025, I went to the building at 1254 Sherman Ave Bronx looking for an apartment to rent. I spoke with the superintendent, and he informed me that there was a one-bedroom apartment available, but I had to apply through a real estate agency. The superintendent was very kind and sent a message to the broker, I didn't know who he was. The broker immediately sent a message and asked me to come to his office. When the broker sent me the address, the superintendent copied a note where I had personal data and sent it to the broker.
When I arrived at the office, I found that it was NYC Empire Realty, and I had already been there in 2023. The office was closed, I made 9 calls trying to reach the broker, but I didn’t get any answer. I waited longer than half an hour just because I thought I was going to talk to someone other than Mr. Jansel. Finally, the broker sent me a message saying that he went out to move the car and would be back in 20 minutes. When the broker arrived at the office, I met Mr. Jansel, and he told me that the apartment was already rented and that for now he did not have any apartments available. It was obvious that Mr. Jansel recognized me and knew that I had returned to ask for his help.
NYC Empire Realty
is one of the realtors that lists the apartments for CHESTNUT HOLDING Co.
My second disappointing experience with Mr. Jansel Pujols led me to write an
email to CHESTNUT HOLDING with the complete story.
May 28, 2025
Info@chestnutholdings.com Phone: (718) 543-8200
PLEASE READ MY STORY, I
NEED YOUR HELP
I want to let you know the efforts I have made to rent a one-bedroom apartment through your agency CHESTNUT HOLDING OF NEW YORK INC. In June 2019 when I started collecting my retirement, I became interested in the building at 2700 Grand Concourse in the Bronx. I expressed to the Superintendent my wishes to be one of the tenants of the building. On August 4, 2023, the super informed me that apartment # 210 was vacant. He introduced me to Mr. Walny Valdez, from WV Realty, one of your brokers. They showed me the apartment even though it needed some repairs. I emailed my documents to Mr. Valdez, but he never responded to my emails nor phone calls.
On August 30, 2023, the superintendent showed me apartment #202 informing me that it would be available soon. He called another of your brokers, Mr. Jansel Pujols from NYC Empire Realty. I emailed him the documents required along with a voucher from NYC. On September 7, 2023, the super informed me that apartment 202 had problems with the previous tenant who had decided to hand over the keys on September 11, 2023, the expiration date of the contract. On September 18, 2023, I went to the hospital for surgery. On October 3, 2023, I asked Super if the apartment was still available and he said yes, it is not rented yet. In fear of losing the apartment I made my own discharge against medical advice. On November 1, 2023, the Super allowed me to make a video and take pictures so I could send them to family and friends, this kept my hope of renting.
On November 20, 2023, I went to Mr. Pujols' office to fill out an application. I gave him a money order for $20.00 to cover the cost. On November 22, 2023, Mr. Pujols told me that my application was in process, but due to the Thanksgiving holiday, the office would be closed for the week. I tried to reach him out many times leaving messages, but Mr. Pujols ignored my calls. On November 29, 2023, the super informed me that apartment 202 had been rented to a Jamaican lady.
I really don’t know if I was rejected by the management or if the brokers just put false expectations on me. I expressed to them my financial situation that forced me to ask the city for a voucher. I am still looking at Zillow for an apartment. Please, if you can help me to rent one of your apartments, I will always be very grateful. Sincerely, CG
Emailed
June 1, 2025
To: CHESTNUT
HOLDING CO.
FOLLOWING MY
EMAIL OF MAY 28, 2025. MY SINCERE THANKS
The email you sent to Mr. Jansel Pujols of NYC Empire Realty demonstrates efficiency and professionalism in how you approach the issues that people bring to you.
Chestnut Holding's
success is a direct result of its commitment and the positive outcome it gives
to the community. I am deeply grateful for the time and prompt attention you have given to my
story.
THIS IS MR. JANSEL PUJOLS' FALSE AND COWARDLY RESPONSE TO CHESTNUT HOLDING CO
BOND NY PROPERTIES
On November 17, 2023, I got my second voucher, but the director of SAMARITAN VILLAGE in Queens, the second shelter I was transferred to, renewed the voucher without the yearly updates from social security. Despite all my attempts to get the voucher renewed from the director, it was not possible, and I lost the opportunity to rent an apartment through Bond NY.
ADA REALTY.
On April 27, 2024, I was transferred to another shelter in Brooklyn. On May 22, 2024, I found an apartment in the Bronx through Ada Realty. The process of my case was handled negligently, and it not only caused me to lose an apartment but also destroyed me emotionally. In June 2024 I signed a lease and was issued through Human Resources. Every month my case was postponed to the next month, and I didn't know the reasons.
The owner also didn't know what was going on. On October 17, 2024, I was told that there was a problem with my alimony because the letter came from the child support office and not from an alimony office. My income was taken as child support and not as alimony. I provided a letter from the attorney who represented me in court stating that this income was alimony, but the Human Resources office still interpreted it as child support. On October 29, 2024, my case was closed.
MY
DISTRESSING AND DISAPPOINTING EXPERIENCE WITH BRUMA REALTY.
Since January
2024 I have been trying to contact an agent from Bruma Realty, and all my
efforts have been futile. Bruma Realty is the agency that lists most of the
apartments in Bedford Park and the Grand Concourse area, which are my favorite
places in the Bronx where I am looking for. I have requested to apply for
apartments many times without receiving any response.
On November 26, 2024, I emailed four Bruma’s realty agents expressing my frustration at applying for an apartment and not receiving any response. The subject was: MY HOPES FOR RENTING AN APARTMENT ARE IN YOUR AGENCY. On December 3, 2024, Bruma Realty gave me the opportunity to see an apartment on the 3rd floor, but the building did not have an elevator, and I could not accept it. I was expecting to have knee surgery and walking to the apartment would be hard for me.
On January 29, 2025, Bruma Realty gave another opportunity to see an apartment on floor 4 without an elevator and I couldn’t take it. I met Sadia Madera, one of the agents, and expressed my frustration at the difficulty of getting an apartment, especially during the time I am mourning the recent loss of my son. Mrs. Madera, very compassionate with my pain, offered me help. On February 5, 2025, she found an apartment for me, I filled out an application and sent all the documentation required. I was approved by a landlord, and they sent me the lease which I filled out online.
On February 11, 2025, the shelter’s housing specialist told me that she could not begin processing my new case because I did not have a correct voucher. This was very unfair and frustrating for me because for several months I have been asking for my voucher to be fixed, but no one has time, or they don't know how to do it. The Bruma Realty agency was disappointed by the incorrect voucher that I presented with the application for the apartment. In addition, they complained that they had emailed the housing specialist and didn’t receive any response. I begged Mrs. Madera for help, and I was given another chance to present a correct receipt. I went to Human Resources and tried to fix the voucher by myself, but it came out with the wrong amount. Bruma Realty lost credibility over me and canceled the lease. However, Ms. Madera tried to help me with two more apartments in the same building with the same owner, but Bruma Realty refused my requests. Ms. Madera blocked my calls, and they were directed to her voicemail.
In my desperation to lose the Real Estate that I always wanted to rent one of its apartments, I emailed the administrator Mr. Josh Kossoff and the broker Ms. Madera. As a plea, I explained my housing situation and the need to rent an apartment, but they did not respond. My hopes of finding an apartment in my favorite area became almost impossible. When the rental website Zillow sends me apartment notifications, it's hard for me to skip Bruma Realty.
ANGELA VILORIA HOUSES OF NY
-REALTOR OR SCAMMER?
April 30, 2025, I requested an application for an apartment at 1240 Sherman Ave apt B2, Bronx, NY 10456. Around 9pm I received a response from Ms. Angela Viloria and asked me to answer 7 questions regarding my income, credit score, etc.
On May 4, 2025, Ms. Viloria sent me an email saying
that she received partial documents, she wanted my income tax, bank statements,
proof of my income, a complete credit & background check by Transunion/My
smart move, etc.
THESE ARE SOME OF MY DESPERATE CRIES PUT INTO
EMAILS SEEKING HELP SO THAT I WOULD NOT BECOME JUST ANOTHER HOMELESS PERSON IN
NEW YORK.
As all my correspondence had the same subject and objective, I will highlight only a few messages where I describe the most relevant facts. On the other hand, since my computer was thrown out in my first shelter, I lost a lot of information and evidence. Because these posts are part of the last book I'm writing, I've changed the real names to pseudonyms.
January 23, 2020 Mayor Bill de Blasio City Hall New York, NY 10007
I turn out to you by putting my hope of finding help in your good heart that is always in favor of the New York’s community. The tragedy of my life is documented on my website www.bankofamericamykiller.com I beg you to see my personal life. In this blog I lay my fears and anguish that have been invisible to the world.
On 1979 I came to New York fascinated by the great American dream, I've spent my whole life working hard to keep this dream. I moved to New Jersey and worked for 21 years for Bank of America. I was abused and victim of medical discrimination, since 2004 mentally tortured by the Bank and its Attorneys that left me in the streets selling my story: “FOUR YEARS OF A LIVING HELL AT BANK OF AMERICA”.
On September 2012, I returned to New York wanting to die on the street demanding justice. The miserable life that Bank of America forced me to live has been inseparable from my survival to keep a roof over my head and a place for my books. I have rented rooms in places such as the kitchen, walking closets and living rooms, I've been through humiliation, deception, lies, threats, intimidation, theft and sexual harassment that have forced me to live locked up in a room. Most of my landlords live on public assistance and my rent must be paid in cash, which it’s between $500.00 and $600.00. To date I have rented 18 rooms and in some of them I have felt fear for my life, even where I currently reside, I was sexually assaulted. The landlady kicked me out of the house to cover up her cousin's wrongdoings.
On April 2019 I decided to have my retirement and combine it with my income of alimony to rent a studio-apartment. I visited a super from a building in the Bronx and we had an interview in the basement where he lives. He told me that with my income I would qualify for one studio. He also assured me that the building’s owner was his friend, and he will speak on my behalf. He created great expectations for me, assuring that by mid-July 2019 two studios will be vacated. He showed me one of them on the third floor.
I trusted this man and expressed to him my need to have a place to stay while I was waiting for the studio. He called a tenant on the 7th floor for a small room that she had available. It was a walking closet. The landlady asked $800.00 for rent, but I turned down the high price. The super asked for $600.00 and we agreed, then the super asked me for a $150.00 commission. We went to the bank to withdraw the money. I moved in on July 6, 2019, and the super promised me I will be in the room for only two weeks. Three days later he asked me to lend $100.00, and I gave him the money promising he'd pay it back by the end of the week. He never did it.
The landlady's strange lifestyle made my life hell, and I felt terror living in the apartment. I called the Super many times, but he ignored my calls and wouldn't even open the basement door for me. One day I met him in the hallway, and he told me that the building’s owner came every Thursday and that I should ask him about the studio. This never happened, I couldn't meet the owner.
On August 31, 2019, the super informed me that the apartment on the third floor was vacated, but I had to wait because he didn't have the keys to clean it. Five days later he told me it was going to be ready in October because it needed repairs. My life at home #16 was intolerable and I had to move to another room a few blocks away from the building. On September 21, 2019, I met the super at a vegetable store and informed me that another tenant was renting a room on the third floor where the studio was.
On Thursday, September 26,
2019, I went to the building to see the owner. After an odyssey in
complicity with the super's brother, I could see him in the elevator for a few
seconds. I asked him about the studio and in an unfriendly way he replied that
he did not know what he was going to do. The super was present, speechless.
On October 17, 2019, I moved back into the building taking the super offer. This time he charged me $100.00 commission and the landlady $50. 00. He forgot that he never paid me the $100.00 I had lent him. In this apartment I could see the studio that was across the hall. The door didn't have a top lock, and I could see inside through the hole. One day I was shocked when I saw a man leave the studio. The super told me that he was one of his friends who slept there temporarily. On October 26, 2019, I met the super in the elevator and asked him for the key to the entrance of the building that the landlady never gave me. He asked me to meet him in the basement to pick up a copy. This was a hoax; he didn't have the key but asked me for $200.00 to pay the people who worked on the fifth floor. This lie made me run out of his apartment.
December 20, 2019, I called the building’s office asking for the studio. They asked for an income of $50,000.00 a year and a credit score of over 700. My income was not enough, and I couldn't qualify. I had no choice but to give up the promises that the super still gives me. I am devastated and frustrated that I cannot have a decent place to live, my financial situation prevents me from having one. Please, I need your help finding a city program that will allow me to rent an apartment. Sincerely, CG
****
February 4, 2020, emailed to Letitia James: gethelp@pubadvocate.nyc.gov. subject: PLEASE HELP ME NOT BECOMING ONE MORE HOMELESS OF NY
Aug 16, 2021, 12:35 AM complaints@dhr.ny.gov subject: DESPERATELY ASKING FOR HELP
Aug 19, 2021, 2:37 PM dhr.sm.complaints <complaints@dhr.ny.gov>
To whom it may concern, If you would like to
file a complaint of discrimination, please visit the following link to learn
more: https://dhr.ny.gov/complaint Respectfully,
Aug 20, 2021, 12:59 AM to: hrp@urbanjustice.org subject: DESPERATELY ASKING FOR HELP
Aug 20, 2021, 12:49 AM to: civil.rights@ag.ny.gov subject: DESPERATELY ASKING FOR HELP
Aug 20, 2021, 12:49 AM to: civil.rights@ag.ny.gov subject: DESPERATELY ASKING FOR HELP
There is no one left to call, write, or email. I cried out for help without being heard and I turned to you because I don't have anyone else anymore. I have written letters to Millshan Realty Co building management c/o Miller and Miller 29 Locust Avenue Rye, N.Y. 10580 (914) 439-4136, informing them of the corruption I have been victim of on its property. Letters dated February 7, 2020, August 25, 2020, February 29, 2020, July 4, 2021, August 11, 2021, 2021, I have never received a response.
On June 15, 2019, I met Mr. Francis, the superintendent of a building at 2665 Grand Concourse Bronx New York 10468. I expressed interest in renting a studio and he assured me that I qualified for it. On top of that, he said that he has a personal friendship with the building owner and would use his influence to help me. He informed me that by mid-July 2019, two studies would be vacant, 3 L and 8 M. Meantime, he asked one of his friends Ms. Nany Martin of apartment 7 J to rent me a small room she had. On July 6th, 20219 I moved to a room that looked like a walking closet. I paid $600.00 although Ms. Martin rent was $553.51. The super charged me $150.00 commission; we went to the bank to withdraw the money. Three days later, he asked me for a $100.00 loan, never to pay me back. I believed in his promises that I would be there only for a few weeks. The cohabitation in this place was terrifying and I had to move out on September 6, 2019.
On 17 October 2019, the Super brought me back to the building to his friend Ms. Flor Tascano Catano who had a room for rent in her apartment 3 H. The rent was $600.00; he charged me $100 commission and Ms. Tascano $50.00. Ms. Tascano had remodeled the apartment so that two cousins Maria, Luis and I would pay her rent. She converted the living room into two bedrooms, one for herself and the other for her 14-year-old son, the hallway became the living room with furniture. The fire escape window was blocked, and the apartment was left very dark and unvented. The fire department later removed the wall and door to free the ladder. They had to sleep between shower curtains.
On November 16, 2019, I was sexually assaulted by Luis and the next day I informed Ms. Tascano about her cousin degrading act. In one of the visits of Mr. R Cabbas, Ms. Tascano’s ex-husband to his son, I told him what Luis did to me. Ms. Tascano became enraged with me for revealing her cousin's actions and resorted to fraudulent and criminal actions to throw me out of the house and cover her cousin sexual assault. However, on January 31, 2020, she confronted Luis with me and admitted that he had attacked me sexually, but she didn’t take any action.
Luis's sexual harassment continued. He walked through my door half-naked with a towel covering his intimate parts and sometimes it was about to fall. He waited for the moment I was alone in the kitchen washing my dishes to approach me and push me into the sink. His shorts were almost in the middle of his buttocks, and it was obvious that he was not wearing underpants. I still believed in the super promise that he would help me get the studio apartment 3 L. I had no choice but to endure his constant harassment along with the entire family.
On February 25, 2020, Ms. Tascano used her son as another excuse to throw me out of the house. Along with her cousin Maria, she showed me a document that according to her had been given by the court to file a lawsuit against me. She accused me that her son could not sleep because he was afraid that I was going to kill him and her. He asked not to buy a birthday cake because I will poison it. Maria threatened to beat me. All I feel for this kid is compassion for the miserable life he has. He spends most of the time locked up in a room, isolated and doesn’t like to communicate, not even with his parents. I have been generous to him. The mental manipulation and the hate that Ms. Tascano has put on her son, began to take effect on August 17, 2020. I was in the kitchen, and he lifted a flashlight and pointed the light at me in a clear act of hatred and threat.
On February 29, 2020, Ms. Tascano started using letters and people stating they were coming from the court to harass me with eviction, even though I had paid the month and had no rent in arrears. May 10, 2020, Mother's Day was a sad day because of the social distance imposed by Covid-19. My eldest son came all the way from New Jersey and bought me groceries. We saw each other through the crystals of his car. Our meeting was ruined by the lurking and harassment of Ms. Tascano and former landlady Ms. Martin of seventh floor. They yelled at me and called me as I ran to the building.
On August 24, 2020, Ms. Tascano put up a sofa blocking the exit to the apartment and the kitchen leaving less than a foot to pass. I tripped over the couch breaking a glass jug with water and hurt my knee badly, keeping me in bed for a week. On August 28, 2020, with my knee in pain I had to run out of my room amid the darkness and smoke, the fire alarm was activated. As soon as Ms. Tascano saw me screamed at me saying: We're burning! We're burning! She said to terrify me.
On October 1, 2020, the Super of the building removed the lock on my room door stating that it was a New York City order because rented rooms are not allowed to have the door with a key. This is one of my biggest concerns that forces me to be confined in my room, I am not able to lock my door with a key. However, on August 10, 2021, a man stating is Ms. Tascano's brother moved into a room next to me and he locked his door with a key. This man around 7:42 pm approached my door in the middle of the darkness and asked for my name. Ms. Tascano removed the lamp from the ceiling leaving the hallway very dark. As far as I know, Ms. Tascano's family is in her country.
Ms. Tascano and I agreed that I would wait for the court day before the eviction, and I will move out when a judge orders so. On July 16, 2020, Ms. Tascano asked her son to call the police. She told them that she did not know where the courthouse was to sue me. I confirmed that I was going to make her deal effective. I have endured a lot of emotional and physical pain and am not going to give up all my survival efforts, nor am I going to silence the corruption I went through. This is a miserable story that you can see videos and pictures as evidence in my blog: www.bankofamericamykiller.com I am a 66-year-old woman slowly recovering from the long-term effects that left me the COVID-19 in 2020. I live as a prisoner, Ms. Tascano uses the door chain of the apartment to control my exits. I am desperately seeking justice; I beg you to help me find it. Sincerely, CG
Aug 20, 2021, 9:24 AM Civil Rights Civil.Rights@ag.ny.gov to me
Thank you for contacting the Civil Rights
Bureau at the New York Attorney General's Office. Our Office looked further
into the complaint you filed, but we were unable to find evidence of
discrimination that falls within our jurisdiction.
You may, however, wish to contact the New York State Division of Human Rights, which also has the authority to investigate individual complaints of discrimination. Complaints can be filed online at this address: https://dhr.ny.gov/complaint. Should you wish to contact a private attorney, you may obtain attorney referrals from your local bar association.
Please note that your complaint with the Attorney General's office does not have any impact on applicable statutes of limitations. By filing a complaint with the OAG, you have not initiated a lawsuit or a proceeding, nor has the OAG initiated a lawsuit or proceeding on your behalf. Sincerely, Civil Rights Bureau
Aug 25, 2021, 11:50 PM to: kavanagh@nysenate.gov subject: DESPERATELY I AM SEEKING FOR HELP
Sep 9, 2021, 1:09 PM to: gethelp@advocate.nyc.gov subject: MY LANDLADY’S HARASSMENT TURNED INTO TERRORISM
Sep 9, 2021, 12:44 PM to: notifynyc@oem.nyc.gov subject: NEED HELP! MY LANDLADY’S HARASSMENT TURNED INTO TERRORISM
Sep 9, 2021, 11:07 PM to: communitycenter@nypd.org subject: MY LANDLADY’S HARASSMENT TURNED INTO TERRORISM I AM EXHAUSTED SEEKING TO BE HEARD PLEASE HELP ME
Oct 5, 2021, 5:09 PM to: communitycenter@nypd.org sbject: THIS IS A FOLLOW UP TO MY EMAIL OF SEPTEMBER 9,2021.
Nov 3, 2021, 2:25 PM to: communitycenter@nypd.org subject: I'M DESPERATELY LOOKING FOR THREE ANSWERS TO MY QUESTIONS.
Nov 12, 2021, 5:09 PM To: FDNY.businessSupport@fdny.nyc.gov subject: ASKING TO CHECK FIRE ESCAPE WINDOW
Once again, I would like to inform you of a new concern regarding access to the escape ladder in the event of a fire. In previous emails I have expressed my critical housing situation that I have had with Ms. Flor Tascano aka Cabbas in apartment 3 H 2665 Grand Concourse and Bronx, NY 10468. Ms. Tascano turned the living room into two rooms that blocked the fire escape window. In October 2020 you cleared access to the stairs. Now, a new tenant has blocked the escape window with his belongings. I would like you to check if access to this window is secure. Thank you very much for your attention, sincerely CG
Nov 17, 2021, 11:42 PM to: communitycenter@nypd.org
I am sorry, I can't stop bringing to you my
worries of living with corrupt people at 2665 Grand Concourse Apt 3 H Bronx NY
10468. The tenant who lives behind the curtains removed the lock on the front
door because his key got stuck. The super changed the lock and the tenant did
not give me a copy; he told me that I had to ask the new manager of the
apartment for the key. I realized that they intended to leave me locked in my
room and I didn’t have anyone to turn to.
Mar 24, 2022, 10:13 PM to: info@nylawhelp.org subject: A CASE OF EVICTION TURNED INTO TERROR, PLEASE I NEED HELP
My name is Clemencia Garzón, I am a 66-year-old woman who asks you for advice or representation in a lawsuit that my landlady Ms. Flor Tascano (aka Cabbas) has filed against me before the Civil Court of Small Claims. On March 21, 2021, 6 months after she left the apartment, she handed me a letter from the court stating that on April 11, 2022, I have a bench trial for her claim of $9,600.00. Ms. Tascano has sued me in Housing Court for executing my eviction from a room I rented to me on October 17, 2019. This case is not just a matter of eviction or rent arrears, it is also a matter of sexual assault, harassment, intimidation, fears for my life, and most of all, physical and emotional harm.
Due to the pandemic, my eviction process was delayed, and Ms. Tascano took advantage of the eviction moratorium to not pay her rent. On September 22, 2021, Ms. Tascano moved out of the apartment without notifying me. She rented 2 bedrooms and the living room to African American men, marijuana smokers, and the apartment has no ventilation. I still don't know how many there are, nor do I recognize them. They are in their room’s day and night. Ms. Tascano maintained great cunning to conceal her intentions of leaving me alone with unknown men. On March 15, 2022, I went to the hospital by emergency due to an upper respiratory tract infection with severe symptoms shortness of breath-cough-nasal congestion-sore throat-chills. This infection is worsening my health; I am still recovering from the sequels left to me by the Covid-19 I had in 2020. It has been hard for me to get rid of the shortness of breath. I have also been in the hospital due to skin infections with painful eruptions. Ms. Tascano locked with a key the extra bathroom the apartment has.
I don’t have anywhere to live; due to the pandemic my living income was cut off and it is difficult for me now to qualify for a studio-apartment. I am waiting for the two pending lawsuits that Ms. Tascano has filed against me. One she is accusing me that I am going to kill her and her son, and the other for eviction. I am looking forward to the day my case is heard by a judge or jury to have justice. Thank you for your attention to my case. Sincerely, CG.
April 13, 2022, 12:58 PM to: housing4allny@gmail.com subject: VICTIM OF ABUSES LOOKING FOR HELP, FOR JUSTICE
April 13, 2022, 11:37 AM to: press@cchr.nyc.gov subject: VICTIM OF ABUSES LOOKING FOR HELP, FOR JUSTICE
Mar 24, 2022, 9:27 PM to: HousiGrpAdv@legal-aid.org subject: LOOKING FOR LEGAL HELP
April 16, 2022, 8:22 PM to: michellebe@bronxdefenders.org subject: VICTIM OF ABUSES LOOKING FOR HELP, FOR JUSTICE Ms. Michele Bello Bronx Defenders Bronx, New York
April 25, 2022, 2:53 PM To: mdandin@advocate.nyc.gov subject: VICTIM OF ABUSES LOOKING FOR HELP, FOR JUSTICE
May 30, 2022, 11:34 PM to: s8.info@nycha.nyc.gov subject: PLEASE HELP ME NOT BECOMING ONE MORE HOMELESS OF NY
Once again, I am writing to you asking for
help, so I don't become one more homeless person of New York.
May 30, 2022, 1:06 PM to: RiveraJ@nyassembly.gov subject: PLEASE HELP ME NOT BECOMING ONE MORE HOMELESS OF NY.
On May 20, 2022, I was lucky enough
to receive a brochure to invite people to your Community Resource Fair event.
I am writing to you because I feel that you are a person who inspires
confidence and cares about the well-being of the New York Community. I
apologize for being too expressive to tell you my story and ask for your help
so that I don't become just another homeless person in New York after July
8, 2022.
Jun 2, 2022, 3:34 PM to: civiljustice@hra.nyc.gov subject: PLEASE HELP ME NOT BECOMING ONE MORE HOMELESS OF NY
Once
again, I am writing to you asking for help, so I don't become one more homeless
person in New York after July 8, 2022. I must comply with a court order
to vacate a room I rented under the corruption of a superintend and landlady. I
am 67 years old, and I still live the fear effects left by the abuse and sexual
assault I went through.
Civil Justice civiljustice@hra.nyc.gov Fri, Jun 3, 2022, 8:48 AM to me
Hello, thank you for contacting New York
City’s Office of Civil Justice (OCJ). OCJ partners with legal organizations
across New York City to provide access to free legal assistance to New Yorkers
facing eviction and displacement. OCJ is a unit of the City’s Department of
Social Services (DSS).
We would like to contact you with free legal help. Can you please provide us with the following: Your address, The index or LT number of the court case. We are here to help.
Jun 3, 2022, 10:25 AM From Clemencia Garzon clegarz@gmail.com to Civiljustice
Thank you very much for your help. I am
sending to you a court date notes from Housing Civil Court that was adjourned
to May 6, 2022, and the stipulation.
Hello, thank you for providing the
additional information. We have referred your matter to one of our legal
services providers for possible assistance with the housing court case. NEVER RECEIVED ANY HELP
Jun 2, 2022, 3:38 PM to: info@nycommunities.org subject: PLEASE HELP ME NOT BECOMING ONE MORE HOMELESS OF NY
Jun 2, 2022, 3:13 PM to: hrp@urbanjustice.org subject: PLEASE HELP ME NOT BECOMING ONE MORE HOMELESS OF NY
Jun 3, 2022, 11:23 AM to: hrp@urbanjustice.org
As part of my message sent to you on June 2, 2022, I am attaching the stipulation issued by the Housing Court that demands that I must vacate on July 8, 2022, the room that Ms. Flor Tascano rented to me. Also, I am sending to you a court date from Housing Civil Court that was adjourned to May 6, 2022. I will always be very grateful to you for your help in this housing crisis that keeps me deeply devastated. NEVER RECEIVED ANSWER
Jun 3, 2022, 5:51 PM to: alarancuent@legal-aid.org subject: PLEASE HELP ME NOT BECOMING ONE MORE HOMELESS OF NY
Jun 3, 2022, 11:57 AM to: info@nycommunities.org subject: Re: PLEASE HELP ME NOT BECOMING ONE MORE HOMELESS OF NY
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April 28, 2025
I've rewritten my post-personal life, this is a miserable chapter of my latest book I RAN OUT OF PAPER, INK, AND PEACE OF MIND. On one page I summarize the 18 homes I have had since I started a housing crisis that left me homeless.
My posts on my website were used against me to resolve a long-standing legal issue that I have been fighting in a New Jersey Court. I was forced to stop writing my miseries so that my ex-husband would not use them to defame me in Court and get rid of his alimony obligation. He made false statements based on the information I provided on my blogs to create a negative image of me and the Court would rule in his favor.
The three most impactful homes have been: Home # 2 This experience left me with a confusing picture about the morality of some people who enforce laws. Many times, I felt more insecurity at home than on the street. I couldn't believe that the police officers with whom I shared the same roof had no dignity, no respect for themselves, for others, and for the institution they represented. Home # 12 This is the most evil and corrupt landlady I have ever met. The protagonists of this macabre story are introduced with names to identify their misdeeds. (2 pages). Home #18 is the most traumatic and overwhelming experience I've ever had in my housing crisis. It was marked by the corruption of the people in the building where I tried to rent an apartment. All my efforts ended up in a New York City Courthouse. My room was a steppingstone that threw me into a deep hole to live more misery as a homeless person. (3 pages).
SUMMARY HOME # 1
September 04, 2012, I found in a newspaper a room for rent. The landlady accepted me with my old poodle dog. The rent was $550 00 per month plus $25.00 Internet services. I wasn't allowed to use the kitchen, and this forced me to eat canned food. The landlady was a Hispanic woman with two daughters (3, 10 years) and her fiancé father of the younger girl. Every space in the house was rented to men. The landlady lived off public assistance and the City paid $ 1,000.00 for her rent. She received rent payments from tenants over $3,000.00 per month. At the same time, she had a cleaning business under her sister’s name who owned a restaurant. The living room was divided into two parts, one for her, the fiancé and the youngest daughter. The other side was separated by a low wall and was part of the kitchen where the eldest daughter and her grandmother slept.
My room was located on the second floor next to two bedrooms and behind the bathroom. One room was rented to three alcoholic men; they drank every night making noises while playing loud music. The bathroom most of the time was disgusting, the drunk men fell asleep there. The other room was rented to a married man who used to sleep with his lovers. The basement was rented to two men. One of them was an alcoholic who was harassing the 10-year-old girl, I heard rumors that he was the landlady’s lover. He paid rent with food stamps. The landlady was obsessed with Jennifer Lopez and wanted to have her body; she paid $10,000.00 for a plastic surgery. She removed the fat from shoulders and back to increase her butt. After the surgery she stayed at home showing everyone how her new butt looked. There was no peace in the house, the loud fights between the landlord, fiancé, grandmother, tenants and their daughters were frequent. My dog’s health deteriorated quickly, and I had to put him to sleep. I became homeless. My ex-husband reported me as a missing/dead person and terminated my alimony. I rented 5x5 storage to keep my books and spend the night there. This place was as cold as the street; the humidity was high and the paint on the ceiling fell on me with dust that I could barely breathe.
The situation worsened when the English-speaking police officer decided to live with one of his mistresses in the house. This woman was an arrogant person who didn't greet anyone. She left her underwear on the bathroom floor. Their room was right across from the kitchen. One day I was shocked to see the police officer and his lover sleeping naked with the room’s door opened. The chef told me that one day at noon he went to the kitchen and heard their screams and moans from the sexual act. They were always drunk. The owner was informed that a woman who was not a tenant lived in the house and came to investigate it. When he asked this officer if the woman was his friend, he had the audacity to say that the woman was the chef's girlfriend.
I went back to Craigslist to find another place to live. I found a lady who said she lived with her 12-year-old son and ex-fiancé. She was renting a room for $400.00 and asked for a month's deposit. The day of my move was very complicated; it was hard for me to get into the apartment with my book boxes. The hallway was filled with many things, a large rack to dry clothes, a table with a printer, books, paper, electrical cables on the floor, etc. The living room was divided into two rooms and one of them was the one for rent. It had a double bed that was nearly the size of the room, the space for my clothes and boxes was reduced. It had a walking distance of 2 feet by 5. The other room was like a closet and only had a bunk bed for children where the landlady and her son slept. The main room was occupied by a man who was the landlady's ex-fiancé. At night, people would sit on the steps of the building to drink, fight, smoke, shout, and play loud music. Even though my room was on the second floor, I could hear the noises.
The landlady had decided to go to college in the morning and have a part-time job in the afternoon. Her son was injured in a public-school during play time and she had filed a lawsuit. She told me he was attending a Catholic school because she didn't like her son meeting with Hispanic or black kids. The boy's father lived in her country and was the mother's brother-in-law. He was a white man, and his son inherited the color of the father with the complexion of the mother who had dark skin. One day when I got home the apartment was dark. Suddenly I found the landlady sitting at the kitchen table with a lighted candle and crying. She told me she had money issues, and she might lose the apartment for not paying the rent. She had to choose between paying rent or overdue electrical services nearly $760.00. Since May 2014, the ex-fiancé had not helped her enough because he had four underage children from other relationships. That night I couldn't recharge my computer or my phone. The next day I felt sick and had to go to the hospital, when I returned to the apartment, it still had no electricity. I had to live the month of the deposit and during this time the landlady did not speak to me and maintained a hostile attitude.
The landlady had split a bunk bed in which I had one bed and her son the other. She slept in the master room. The living room was separated by a wall making it two rooms. In one room the son slept and in the other one 2 of his friends. One of them was a 21-year-old man who had been expelled from his house. The other man was 19 years old. A few days after I rented the room, he was taken back to jail for breaking into a house in Brooklyn. His roommate, 21 years old, was lucky he could run away. The landlady was an irritable, resentful, arrogant and selfish woman. The relationship with her son was marked by domestic violence, constant shouting and cursing. Their lack of respect and loud fights always left me nervously broken down. This mother was creating a monster in her son who fed his desire to become a New York police officer. Every day I heard the e blows against the door as also objects that they threw to the wall or floor to destroy them. TVs, cell phones, chairs and even a laptop were destroyed by the landlord in a fight with her son. He did not have television or entertainment because all were broken by his mother.
Two weeks later, the landlady told me that her husband, from whom she was separated, would come to the apartment. This man had no voice or command in the house; their son told me that his father was like a zero to the left for his mother. His grandmother felt afraid to talk with the daughter. The fights increased after the husband stayed in the apartment. The landlady complained that he was an old man 20 years older than her and suffered from body aches to help with household chores. Finally, she asked him to return to his country.
I met a woman on the street and asked her about a room to rent. The building had no elevator, and the apartment was located on the 4th floor. I needed to leave the lousy place where I was living and accepted to take the room despite my medical condition. The landlady told me she was renting her son's room because he was in jail. He couldn't return home after being released because he had drug problems. The room was part of the living room and could not be locked because it had emergency windows. The landlady asked me for $800.00 for a month's rent plus the deposit. She lived with a 17-year-old daughter and a troubled tenant who has been with her for 3 years.
After I moved in, the landlady warned me that on the 5th floor above my room was living a mentally troubled boy who walks making noises. She asked me not to complain. I noticed that the apartment didn’t have showers. The people of the house collected water into a bucket and with a bowl they took their bath. This was to avoid the landlady’s daughter taking long baths and listening to music. The toilet paper could not be thrown into the toilet, it had to be left in an open container, and it was disgusting. Two weeks later I was in shock. The landlady introduced me to her son who had just been released from prison. He had an intimidating attitude toward me and asked me to leave his room where he had his stuff. Since I had paid the month's rent I stayed in the room until the expiration. The man slept on a sofa in the living room.
One night I was alone with the other tenant, and she talked about the landlady’s problems. Her son was trafficking illegal drugs in his room. One day he sold heroin to two undercover policemen. Later, they arrived at the apartment and went to his room in search of drugs. The landlady, daughter and son were handcuffed. The mother tried to resist the arrest and fell to the floor, hurting herself. She used this incident to file a lawsuit against the police. The next day they were released, but the son stayed imprisoned. As the landlady was taking public assistance, she was not permitted to live with her son, but she did it. He was heroin -addicted and using the bathroom became almost impossible. He spent long hours sitting on the toilet until he fell asleep. He would leave the syringes in the bathroom, walk naked in the living room and at night he would scream, sing in vulgar language, going in and out of the apartment. I found the syringes inside the toilet. One morning I found him naked in the living room. At night he shouted and sang in vulgar language. As we sleep very close to each other I have no peace of mind to sleep. He was in and out of the apartment the entire night.
SUMMARY HOME# 8
It was so hard for me to find a place to live that I had to go to a rental room agency. This business was really a travel agency; there was a woman at a desk by the entrance to the office with a list of rooms for rent. The charge to find the room was a week's rent and had to be paid in cash. I was sent to different places, most of the rooms were disappointing and without privacy. One of them was in a hallway with curtains hanging from the wall. I didn't have many options, but I decided to rent the least bad one. The room was the living room of a one-bedroom apartment. The landlady lived with her husband, a 12-year-old daughter, a 17-month-old baby and a small dog that was mostly of the time inside a closet. The rent was $500.00.
As always, after moving into a room I discovered how the people in the house really lived. The master bedroom was rented to a couple, and the family slept on a full-size futon located in a small hallway from the entrance to the apartment. It measured 8 feet wide by 16 feet long. There was a flat TV against the wall in the living room and a small crib in front of the kitchen entrance. When the family was sleeping, it was difficult to get out the kitchen door. The wife slept with her head next to her husband's feet and the daughter with her legs over the mother's body. Most of the time I found the girl with her head hanging from the futon.
I didn’t have enough time to sleep because of the family noises. The husband worked two jobs and came home around midnight. At that time the wife would start cooking and the whole family would be awake until dawn the next day. The baby was not allowed to sleep at night because the wife slept during the day, both needed to sleep at the same time. The younger girl used to scream loudly when she wanted something. Many times, she hit my door with the bottle waking me up. The bathroom was stinky, the dog poo-poo inside and diapers were all over the floor.
I met a lady from my home country at a Hispanic parade; her son was a politician seeking a position in the Bronx. She informed me of a tenant in her building who rented rooms. This was a lady from Haiti, and she rented me a room for $500.00. She asked me for a copy of my driver's license, but I hesitated to give it to her because she didn't want to tell me her real name. She also informed me that she would not sign me a receipt for rent payment. The room had no bed, there was a sofa bed, but the landlady told me it belonged to her daughter, and I couldn't use it. For two weeks I slept in a convertible armchair and this hurt my back, so I had to buy a bed. There were some religious items, frames, crosses, and a stand to pray. I asked the landlady to take her stuff out of my room, I needed space for my belongings, but she moved out a few things. The apartment looked like a cemetery full of crosses, some large others small. On weekends the landlady takes care of her grandson. The baby's chair had a cross and a Bible.
I soon realized that something was wrong with this woman, she repeated several times facts that had already been told to me. The first night I was scared when I went to the bathroom, it was dark and I heard someone snoring in the living room, but I couldn't see anyone. On the third day, I saw the feet of a man coming out from a sofa. Later, I learned that this person was her husband. The landlady walked around the house in her underwear, looked like a big baby with a wet diaper, and showed the shape of her private parts. She would open my room to go through my belongings. One day I left a container in the bathroom, and she put it in her room. When I paid the second month's rent, she asked me for extra money to pay for the overdue utilities which were almost $700.00. I refused to give her extra money and in retaliation she limited the use of electricity. The light from the hallway was removed and I had to use a flashlight to walk among the darkness. The kitchen and the bathroom had a dim light. She started a chasing attitude towards me; she locked the door to force me to ring the bell. Every day the persecution of the landlady became more intense, she stood by my room door to listen to my telephone conversations.
She turned off the cold water and I often burned my body when showering, she also removed the head’s shower and she left inside the bathtub containers full of clothes. She would open the bathroom door when I was using it. One day her husband told me about the difficulties of living with his wife. I visited the lady who introduced me to the landlady I was dealing with, to tell her about the horrible situation I was experiencing. She offered to rent part of her living room for $500.00. It was an open space near the windows and heaters; I needed to divide it with a wall and leave a space for her to have part of her living room.
SUMMARY HOME #10
On October 12, I bought four folding doors of plastics and materials to make a wall in my new landlady living room. The super of the building charged me $ 250.00 for labor. This small space cost me $642. 21 and it was the only way I could have a room. The landlady had the master bedroom; her mess was impressive. most of her stuff was on the floor all over the room, it seemed like a pig house, dirty and there was no space to walk through. She had 2 rooms rented, one by his niece and the other by a lesbian. The niece controlled the apartment, had an intimidating attitude and made her aunt's life hell; There was no respect between them.
Neither the landlady nor the niece cooked. Many times, I heard the landlady ask about the food she had kept in the fridge and the niece denied that she had eaten it. The lesbian and I couldn't have anything in the fridge because they ate it. We hid some groceries in the room, since I didn't have a lock, I used a trunk with a key. One day I was sick and made soup, I left it on top of the stove while cooling. The shameless family ate it up without my permission. Sleeping in the living room near the kitchen was very unpleasant, there were a lot of mice running from the kitchen to my room. The superintendent charged me $6.00 to put a lamina under each of the two radiators of the living room where the mice were hiding. The landlord warned me that if I pay for the radiators that are in my room, I will have to pay for the 10 radiators that are in the apartment. The lesbian tenant moved out of the apartment, and I was sad, she was the only honest and respectful person with whom I shared the apartment. She suggested that I ask for her room, although it was very small, it had a door and walls.
The super wanted to remove the division he installed in the living room; he did not want to have problems with the owner of the building; the division was illegal. The landlady frequently called NY City to complain about the problems of the building. The rent of the new room was $ 600.00, and I took it. Then she wanted to keep the division to find someone and rent the space. I had paid for this, so I agreed with the Super to remove it, this angered the landlady. My life in this house became more and more impossible every day, especially with the niece's unpleasant attitude. One day she yelled at me and tried to touch my face with her middle finger while cursing. She was hysterical and asked me to move out of the apartment.
SUMMARY HOME # 11
SUMMARY HOME #12
On October 10, 2016, I went to a Mexican grocery store and saw a piece of paper with a phone number that said about a room for rent. I met Lucy, 57, and Mario, her young husband. They had rented the first floor of a house. Lucy asked me for $1,000.00 to move into a room, this included one month's rent and deposit. The room had no bed, and the door was made of transparent plastic with a curtain. Next door was another room rented to a 25-year-old Korean student. The first day Lucy showed me the room for rent, she opened the Korean student's door for me to see how messy it was. He paid $600.00 rent including $100.00 for cleaning. Lucy and Mario married in 2015 as soon as they discovered cancer in Mario. This man through public assistance for the treatment of cancer began a process to legalize his immigration status in the United States. Lucy expected to obtain her residence through him. The Chemotherapy ruined Mario’s intimate functions and they lived in separate rooms. The homeowner was a blind man who lived in the basement, he was married but his wife had a traveling job and came home twice a month. His sister was taking care of the house and managed the rented rooms on the second floor.
One day I met Lucy, and another second-floor tenant named Alexa. I was shocked when Lucy proudly told us what she had done with a previous tenant. This was a single woman with a young kid, Lucy didn’t get along with her and asked to vacate the room. The tenant had difficulties finding another place to live. Lucy had gone to a doctor to remove 2 moles (skin growth) located on each side of the neck. She took advantage of this medical procedure to scratch the scar until bleeding, then called the police saying that the tenant had beaten her up. She made a false report so the tenant could not enter the apartment. At night when the tenant came home the police arrested her. Lucy enjoyed seeing the tenant lying on the ground, handcuffed and her son crying. The police escorted the tenant to pick her stuff up. This evil action was left unpunished.
Lucy was taking care of a boy named
"Carlitos". She used the boy to extort a 27-year-old man for money. deceiving him with
false paternity and motherhood. This man met her when he was 17 years old
making pizza deliveries. Although the couple seemed like mother and son, they
had a clandestine romance over the years.
Lucy told Oscar that she was expecting a baby from him. Oscar believed it because he knew her husband couldn’t have any intimate relationship. Lucy told him that she was going to Mexico for the time of her pregnancy and will come back near the time the baby was born. Oscar believed this despicable action and gave Lucy all the money he had in his savings account to cover the baby’s expenses. The child's mother was unaware of what was happening with her son. She was a single mother with two girls and the boy's father didn't care about him because he was a married man. For periods of time due to Lucy's difficulties to share time with Oscar, she tells him that she had to send their son to Mexico and ask for Oscar money. Lucy promised Oscar that when her husband Mario died, she would take care of his illegal immigration status and would share the benefits she might have from her deceased husband.
The times I saw the boy sitting alone
in the kitchen broke my heart, he was always scared. The boy was forced to call
his fake parent’s mom and dad. The alleged father was proud to display photos
of his alleged son on Facebook. One night Lucy was taking a shower and minutes
later, when she went to her room, I heard a violent fight. Oscar was beating
Lucy while breaking her things. The next day, Alexa arrived at the apartment
and Lucy spoke to her. I was shocked when Alexa told me that Mario found Lucy cheating
on him. Oscar made a call, and Mario took the cell phone, they didn't have any
conversation, but Mario began to review all of Oscar's calls and text messages.
He found photos of the boy having fun with him and Lucy. Mario forbade Lucy
bringing the child into the house, but she did so in secret. The boy's mother
had financial trouble paying Lucy and decided not to bring him anymore.
Although Lucy reduced the amount of the payment, the mother did not accept it.
Lucy went out of her way to charge me an extra $100.00 for cleaning the house. She wanted the bathroom cleaned with pure Chlorine. I refused to use it because it causes me a terrible reaction and irritates my eyes. I offered her other chemical liquids mixed with chlorine that were not too strong, but she did not accept. Mario had a repulsive medical condition in his throat; he would accumulate a secretion and then throw it on the zinc. Many times, I felt nauseous when going to the bathroom.
The relationship between my landlords and the homeowner turned into fights. Mario tried to get a lot of money for the repairs he made to the house. The homeowners offered me a room on the second floor, and I accepted. Alexa advised me that Lucy wanted to hurt me and asked her to do it by throwing me down the stairs if I rented a room from the homeowner. Next day I went to a Civil Court to make a complaint about the threats from Lucy, but the court ruled my case without merit. Then, I went to a Criminal Court to set a precedent if something happened to me. The answer was the same that the police gave me, a crime is necessary to act. I only obtained a letter stating my visit to the Court.
The day of my moving to the second floor Lucy decided to bathe the apartment in pure Clorox and burned something stinky in the kitchen, the smoke was everywhere. I opened my room window, and she yelled at me asking to close it. When I finished moving, I went to New Jersey to spend the weekend.
SUMMARY HOME # 13
On Monday, March 13, 2017, when I arrived home, the police came looking for me. Lucy had called them saying that I had gone to her door cursing her, she accused me of stealing her keys and some knives from the kitchen. She asked the police to take me out of the house because she feared for her life. The homeowner came and talked to the police on my behalf. This time her evil trick didn't work out and her demand was unsuccessful. On the second floor the living room was divided into two rooms, in one of them lived Alexa with her mentally ill 35-year-old son. Next to this room was a large room with curtains hanging on the wall. This space was occupied by a woman and 2 daughters, one 12 years old and the other 4 years old. The homeowner was their mentor and included them in his taxes. He also helps them obtain refugee visas. On the other side of the house were two small rooms; one rented by a mailman for 5 years and the other mine, my rent was $500.00.
The mailman and I became friends to fight against the misdeeds of the tenant who lived with two daughters, she was his enemy. He told me that my room was unoccupied for a long time because the previous tenant died there. The homeowner's brother-in-law took the corpse of this man to the park and sat him on a bench. This way his death appeared to be caused by a heart attack while he was in the park and the house would not be investigated. When I heard this story, my skin became "goose bumps". The mailman was not happy living in the house, he felt that the owner took advantage of his situation, he paid $750.00 for the rent of the bed and the room. In addition, the homeowner rented him a phone for $25.00 a month and it was damaged. These phones were given free of charge to people with public assistance. The homeowner's sister lent him money at 40% interest, he had a debt of $3,000.00. I witnessed some transactions that the two of them recorded on paper
The tenant and her 2 daughters took the apartment as their property to make life miserable for the other tenants. I heard rumors that the homeowner was pretending to be a blind person. He would go to the girls' room and lie on the bed to watch TV with them. The mother went to the basement where he lived to massage his legs, several times he was caught without underwear. His wife was aware of this situation, but she did not care since he had given her the house. The 12-year-old has been raising her younger sister since she was 8 years old, beating her as punishment with everything she could get her hands on. The girls spent most of their time alone, behaved badly, were spoiled and disrespectful to everyone in the house. They listened to no one; the mother turned a deaf ear to any complaint about her daughters. She would leave food on the stove or in the oven for two or three days. Cockroaches piled up on the food and mice ate from it. The kitchen was a mess full of flies. On October 17, 2017, I received a call from the homeowner's sister informing me that when she went to collect the rent from the mailman, she found him dead. The room had a pestilent smell due to the rot of its body; the worms ran down the wall and came out under the door. She deduced that he was dead in his bed for at least two weeks, his face was skeleton. The girls' mother posted this unfortunate event on her Facebook.
SUMMARY HOME # 14
I walked around a church and found a man coming out to pray. He informed me of someone who rented a room. This was a one-bedroom apartment, and I rented a 6 x 8 foot space from a 15-foot living room for $500.00. The back wall had 2 large broken windows that on snowy days would enter the room. To open and close the windows, I had to crawl over the mattresses bouncing on the bed. Behind the headboard of the bed was a damaged heater the size of the bed. It was off due to excessive heat for such a tight space. Under this radiator the mice had their burrow, and it was difficult to catch them due to the lack of space to move things. The living room was divided by a thin wall that allowed me to hear everything from the landlady's side that was her entertainment place. She had a large TV on the wall connected to the music with speakers that when she used it the wall vibrated. At the exit of my room there was a glass display case with liquor bottles. There was a sofa, a tea table and a chair that I had to move back and forth to enter the room. Between the dividing wall and my bed was 2 feet. The trunk where I kept my things left me only 9 inches in walking distance. The apartment was completely crowded, even behind the exit door.
Most of the time the landlady maintained a strange attitude towards me, she seemed annoyed by my presence, it was clear that she wanted total privacy, and I was in her way. When I went to the bathroom and she noticed from her room, she would aggressively slam the door at me without saying anything. In the morning, to avoid greeting me when I left the house, she wore headphones pretending she didn't hear me. She told me that her boyfriend sometimes sleeps at home, when I pass by the kitchen, and he was there she had a jealous attitude. She covered him with her body to avoid any greeting. I saw him very few times during the time I rented the room. He was a married taxi driver.
The landlady always locked the apartment with a chain at any time of the day or night, she told me that it was as a precaution, to avoid being surprised by her ex who let her live in the apartment. I had to call or text her to open the door for me. Sometimes she wouldn't hear the phone because of the music she was listening to, and I had to wait for a long time. On January 4, 2018, a snowstorm called "BOMB CYCLONE" for high winds and low temperatures, entered my room, throwing snow through a broken window. I couldn't have any protection and had to tear a jacket to pieces to cover the holes in the window. In addition to this miserable life, the man from the church who brought me to the apartment became my stalker. He searched for a sentimental relation which I was not interested in. Many times, I saw his car behind my car waiting for me to get out of the building. On weekends when I returned from New Jersey he asked where I was or where I parked because he couldn’t find my car around the building.
SUMMARY HOME # 15
One of my neighbors informed me that one of the tenants on the first floor was renting out her studio bedroom. The living room had a built-in kitchen, a dining table, two bicycles, a TV, and a refrigerator. On a sofa bed the landlady slept. She asked me for $6,00.00 for one month's rent plus the $600.00 deposit. I offered her $300.00 for the deposit and she accepted.
The bedroom had 2 beds, 4 bedside tables, and a dresser between the beds. I didn't ask why there was so much furniture inside the room, I assumed that when I moved in she was going to take it out. A day before my moving, the landlady asked me which bed I would choose to sleep in. I replied that any bed was the same for me, she immediately told me that she would sleep in the other bed. I was shocked when she told me that the room was for sharing. I did not accept the offer and asked her to take her things out of the room or return my money. My decision caused an argument between us, she claimed that by having the room only for me, I took ownership of the apartment. Since she didn't want to give me my money back, she had no choice but to leave me alone in the room. She left the furniture inside.
At night, when I was moving, the landlady complained because I had too many things. She walked into the room like crazy and said that the room was going to be very crowded. She warned me that the room must be very clean and organized. She didn't give me the key to the room and restricted the electricity by turning off the light, she would get angry if I stayed up late at night using a low voltage light bulb. The apartment was very dark, with no ventilation because the windows were blocked out. It was hard for me to cook even breakfast because she was on the couch supervising me.
By the end of the month, I was surprised by the landlady. She told me that one of her previous clients, a man she provided home care for, supported her financially. She was going to her country for one month and a half, this man had the apartment’s key and could come whenever he wanted to. Her strategy to get money for her vacation worked out for her. She knew through my previous landlady that I was an honest person that wouldn't steal her belongings.
SUMMARY HOME # 16
On July 06, 2019, I returned to the building at 2665 Grand Concourse Bronx, NY to meet the Super Francis. We had a meeting in the basement where he lived. After knowing my financial situation, he assured me that I qualified for a studio apartment, and he was also a friend of the owner and would use his influence to help me. He informed me that by mid-July 2019, two studios would be unoccupied, one on the third floor and the other on 8. He showed me the third floor; the tenant who lived there opened the door for us. The super called one of his friends who lived on the 7th floor who had a small room for rent. The landlady asked for $800.00 rent, but with the help of the super down to $600.00. The super asked me for a $150.00 commission, so we went to the bank to withdraw the money. Three days later he asked to lend him $100.00. This loan was never repaid, although I made attempts to collect it.
The room was technically a walk-in closet. The room had a sink and a toilet; I could not have a key because the landlady used the sink to brush her teeth. She gave me a small area in the fridge for my food. The kitchen was disgusting. The stove had pots on top that should be in the same position after cooking, no microwaves or any electrical appliances were allowed. There were 2 large rooms rented to two men, one of them named Samuel on the day of my move, told me this landlady is worse than the devil. By her lifestyle somehow, I agreed with him, but I believed the promises of the super that I would be there only for a few weeks. Indeed, this landlady was a demanding and harassing woman. His strange lifestyle was out of being a normal person. She wouldn't let lights on and lived in the dark. She didn't allow any windows to open, and the apartment smelled awful due to lack of ventilation. Her bedroom was the dining room and from her bed she observed who was in the kitchen and how long. My room was in front of her. I cooked rice and eggs in my bathroom.
Samuel constantly had strong disagreements with the landlady. He had threatened to report her to Social Services if she threw him out of the house. She received over $2,000.00 in rent living on public assistance. She only paid $553.51 in rent. The landlady said he was angry with her because she didn't marry him to obtain legal residency in the country. He brought women into the house and this bothered the landlady. I discovered by myself that Samuel was an abusive and disrespectful man. One day he kissed my shoulders as he came out of the kitchen, and I entered my room. Another day he pushed me against the wall to touch my chest. I reacted violently and walked away shouting at him and asking him for respect. The man who rented the other room was allied with the landlady and was an enemy of Samuel. I observed strange events by this man's door that distressed me. It seemed that they came from evil rituals. Every day different things appeared on the ground such as crosses, cards, bible, glasses, bottles, leaves, etc. The bathroom had no lock, only the door could be closed, it was next to this mysterious man's room.
SUMMARY HOME # 17
The superintendent of the building where I always wanted to rent an apartment recommended me to one of his friends who had a room to rent. I needed a place to live, and I accepted this apartment on a second floor and without an elevator. I had to climb 26 steps. As I entered the building, I noticed the strong smell of marijuana. The apartment was in front of the area where garbage and recyclables were stored, and many flies entered. The landlady rented me the master bedroom, and it was full of furniture and many things from her. The landlady and her 86-year-old mother slept in a small space that was the dining room. The living room was divided into two rooms, one of which was where the landlady's brother, 55 years old, slept, and the other part was the living room. Some days, a 72-year-old woman would help care for the mother and stay with the family. There was a camera in front of my room. The landlady asked for weekly payments of $150.00 and a deposit of $150.00. The night of my move was a nightmare.
I started moving at 6:30 pm. I offered the landlady's brother $50.00 to help me get my things into the room. He refused to help me and instead watched me from the living room as I was struggling with the move. It was hard for me to wait for the elevator on the seventh floor, get things down to the lobby, cross a busy street and then carry them up to the second floor in a heavy shopping cart. The pain in my legs was intense and intolerable. The landlady complained that it was late at night, and I should hurry. She told me that her mother went to bed early and she worked the next day. Her job was a lady-in-waiting for an elderly person, she started at 5:30 p.m. and returned at 8:00 a.m. the next day, 3 days a week. I made my last trips dragging my stuff because I could hardly walk. When I finished moving, the landlady warned me not to make noises because she didn't want complaints from the neighbors.
The next day at 5:30 am the noises from the recycling and trash collection woke me up. A lot of flies came into the room. The distrustful attitude of the landlady's brother stressed me out more and more every day. He would put marks on toilet paper and other personal items to see if I used them. He hid behind my back to see if I used the things in the house. He would sit in a strategic area waiting until I came out of the bathroom. My arrival at the building was annoying: I had to walk among the people who sat at the entrance to smoke marijuana, listen to music and talk loudly.
SUMMARY HOME 18
This housing experience is the last and worst as a tenant of a room. I lived in a chain of corruption made by the people surrounding me.
Luis's harassment continued. He took showers with the door open; my room was between the bathroom and his room. When I opened my door, he was naked in front of it half-naked. He walked with a small towel covering his genitals and sometimes it was about to fall. He waited for the moment when I was alone in the kitchen washing the dishes to come up to me and pushed me towards the sink. His shorts were almost in the middle of his buttocks, and it was obvious that he was not wearing underpants.
On August 24, 2020, Ms. Tascano had intentions to hurt me physically. She brought a sofa to block the exit to the apartment and the kitchen, leaving less than a foot to pass. I had to walk in the dark, suddenly I tripped over the couch breaking a glass jug with water and hurt my knee. I didn't go to the hospital because of Covid-19 precautions and had to tolerate the pain without medication. The family used the smoke detector alarm to harass me, they burned food to set off the smoke alarm. The noise, the smoke, walking in the dark, and knowing that there was no way to escape terrified me. The fire escape was blocked with a wall and the door with a key.
Ms. Tascano often set off the
fire alarm by burning food to harass me. I had to run out of my room in the
darkness and smoke and as soon as she saw me, she would start screaming: We
are burning! We are burning! Triggering the smoke alarm became a habit.
I reported the situation to the NY Fire department. They
removed the wall and the door that Ms. Tascano made to separate the living room
from the hallway. The coexistence became worse, we had police visits. The
cousins moved out without me noticing. The Super removed the lock on my door
stating that it was a New York City order because rented rooms are not allowed
to have the door with a key.
Ms. Tascano filed a lawsuit against me for $9,600.00 in Small Claims Civil Court without giving me copies of the evidence that supports her claim. I refused a mediation because this case was not just a matter of my eviction it also was matter of sexual assault, harassment, intimidation, physical and emotional damage. The case was dismissed, and the judge gave me two months to leave the apartment. So, I did, and I started another terrible housing story as a homeless person.
