This
report serves as documentation of events related to a rental property
where I have lived since January 1, 2014.
For
now I will decline to name the landlord or his management company.
Depending on events, I may find it necessary to do so in future.
But
I must say that after nearly ten years of living in substandard
conditions, with an ever-increasing rent, now so high (since April,
2023) that it requires more than my monthly disability check to pay
it, I want it known that I am dealing with a slumlord, who displays
callous disregard for his tenants and thinks he can treat them like
serfs on his plantation.
During
my time here, I have heard the stories of other tenants, now long
gone. Poor people, disabled people, people with young children, who
were forced to leave because the landlord neglected to make repairs.
They were living with toilets that do not flush, flooding inside
their homes, floors that were cracked and sinking, septic tanks that
were not properly pumped and maintained, the roofs leaking, bad water
and bad plumbing....
I
too have been living with such horrible conditions. I have documented
all of these conditions, I have reported them to the landlord's
office, by telephone and by certified return receipt letters. All of
which have been disregarded.
But
what he clearly does not know is that where I am concerned, I can
guarantee that he picked the wrong woman if he thinks he can
intimidate me with his bluster and bullying tactics.
I
publish this report for my own protection. I find it necessary to
have it on the public record that I have been targeted for invasions
of privacy, harassment, and threats by tenants (known and unknown) on
this property, and by the landlord and his hirelings from his office.
I
have spoken to pro bono legal counsel serving the elderly, the
disabled and the poor, all of which categories I fit in, and have
been advised. I know my rights. I know that there are no legal
grounds whatsoever for any complaints to be made against me, by the
landlord, or by his workers, or by tenants on this property.
I
have always paid the rent on time, no exceptions, for which I have
evidence.
I
have never at any time caused any disturbances on this property, nor
committed any offenses, civil or criminal, against anyone.
No
legal action has been taken by the landlord or by me. If he
chooses such a path of action then I will respond with my own action,
yet to be determined.
I
have suffered grievous damages and am now at risk of worse damages,
and am under threat of losing my home, being forced out due to
fraudulent complaints by tenants and the landlord's office. I am now
living in a hostile environment, through no fault of my own.
I
have done nothing whatsoever which could possibly justify these false
and unwarranted complaints, the slander against my good name, or the
threats and harassment directed against me.
LANDLORD
CITED BY HEALTH DEPARTMENT
The
Health Department recently visited this property. The Building
Department contacted them after they visited my home at my request,
due to the unsafe and substandard conditions for which the landlord
provided no relief.
I
was told by the inspector from the Health Department that there was a
“health hazard” on my rental property. He was very clear that I
had every reason to be concerned for my safety and that the landlord
would be cited for violations of the code. (More detail will be given
later or in future reports.)
I
had been patiently waiting for the landlord to rectify the situation
for over a year. I had sent several letters with specific complaints
about the conditions, starting in September, 2022. But it only grew
worse and worse and nothing was ever done, despite false promises by
the management.
Meanwhile,
he raised the rent, even though he did nothing to make the property
habitable.
In
desperation, with no relief in sight, I finally called the
authorities in the town of Rhinebeck, because after more than a year
of making complaints in writing and by telephone, nothing was done to
rectify the substandard conditions from which I was suffering and
which I had duly reported to the landlord's office.
The
landlord's office had acknowledged the need for renovation of the
plumbing, the septic system, and the entire bathroom, over a year
ago, but all my subsequent letters were ignored and nothing was ever
done. I was told in September, 2023 in a phone call from the
landlord's office that these jobs were scheduled for “early
October”.
(Note
the date: it is now past “early October”. No calls, nothing
scheduled, nothing done.)
The
landlord has been negligent in making necessary repairs for the
entire time I have lived here. The property has been deteriorating
over time and is now unfit for habitation.
INCIDENT
OF HARASSMENT & THREATS BY LANDLORD
The
latest event occurred on October 11, 2023. At 8:30 AM there was
knocking on the door. I was sleeping at that time. I do not ever
answer my door unless I am expecting someone, so I ignored it. A few
minutes later there was more aggressive banging on the door. I
ignored it.
After
the fourth time of loud banging, I went to the door but did not open
it. I was dressed in night clothes, as I was woken from my sleep by
the intrusion. I spoke through the closed door, asking, Who is it?
The
landlord identified himself. I told him that I am not available. He
had been notified several times, in certified return receipt letters
to his office, as well as in telephone conversations, that I require
a minimum of 24 hours notice if I am to be available for a service
visit. He was well aware of this, but chose to disregard it,
repeatedly, with no respect for my privacy or my rights as a tenant.
I
told him there was no notice given and that I was not available.
There is a notice posted on my door:
NO
TRESPASSING
NO
SOLICITING
SERVICE
VISITS BY APPOINTMENT ONLY
This
very notice was included in a recent letter sent to his office in
September, 2023. Yet he disregarded it with no respect whatsoever for
my rights.
There
is no excuse whatsoever for him to invade my privacy or violate my
rights by banging on my door, shouting at me and demanding to be let
in. This is harassment, and even qualifies as menacing, considering
his threats.
I
told him he must make an appointment and directed him to leave.
He
refused to leave and all the while he was shouting at me through the
door in a hostile tone and making a scene on the property, disturbing
the peace.
He
yelled, “I've been trying to reach you!”
That
is a falsehood. He had never responded to any of my formal complaints
by letter, including the latest. As I discovered later that day, I
had received a voicemail from him at 7:30 AM that morning, while my
phone was turned off, asking me to call him, that it was “important”.
A
phone call, one hour before an unannounced visit, in the early
morning, is not acceptable. I was not available. In fact I was
sleeping when he first came to the door.
He
continued shouting demands that I let him in, and banging on the
door, but I refused to open the door. This behavior is outrageous! I
have never in my life seen anything like it.
He
continued shouting outside and claimed that he had received
complaints from 4 different tenants claiming that I was “harassing”
them.
He
shouted that he has “30 e-mails” from these unidentified tenants
making these claims. He shouted at me, “You have been harassing
them!”
No,
I most certainly had done no such thing, but I was not about to be
provoked into having a point-counterpoint argument through a door with a person behaving like a lunatic. I
only said that these are false complaints.
He
shouted, “They are all against you, I am the only one standing
up for you. Everyone is against you!”
This
is absurd. If in fact he was standing up for me, as he claims, why is
he harassing me and attempting to intimidate me (which can't be
done); why has he not even acknowledged any of my complaints of
actual harassment and false complaints by his tenants?
And
I don't give a tinker's damn who among his hostile tenants is
“against” me. My only concern is the facts and the law. If liars
decide to make false complaints it's nothing to do with me, but I
will not tolerate harassment and threats from the landlord because of
it.
Here
are the facts:
I
do not know any of the tenants on this property except for those in
two (2) houses on either side of my house, with whom I am on
perfectly good terms.
There
is one tenant across the way, one Tracy Krawitt, on the other side of
the property, who has made false complaints against me on more than
one occasion.
I
do not know her, she is a total stranger. I have never harassed her
in any way. However, she has been an aggressor against me. She made a
false police report (a criminal offense) in 2019, lying to the police
in her claims that I had "threatened to kill" her.
This,
after a disturbance entirely of her own making, outside my house, as
she and her associate were driving large commercial vehicles,
shouting and coming close to hitting my car. No such threats were
made by me. Krawitt is a habitual liar.
She
later made a number of false complaints to the landlord's office,
lying again that I had trespassed into her yard. I have never, at any
time, trespassed into any yard on this property.
I
called Dog Control to stop Krawitt from disturbing the peace. She is
the negligent, irresponsible owner of a dog that was howling all
hours of the day and night.
The
fact is, since 2019, Krawitt has committed civil and criminal
offenses against Barbara Hartwell. She is the only aggressor,
the only offender. I am the only injured party who has
sustained damages. I have published several reports exposing this
woman, in my own defense. (See reports at bottom of page.)
As
for other tenants making false complaints against me of “harassment”,
I do not know any one of these individuals, nor have I ever spoken to
them at any time, nor have had any interactions with them. I have
never harassed anyone on this property, in any way, shape or form.
These
liars are clearly accomplices of Tracy Krawitt who are acting in
malice by making false complaints and slandering Barbara Hartwell in
order to try to force me out of my home. They (whoever they are) have
created a hostile environment on the property which prevents me from
the “quiet enjoyment” to which I am entitled as a tenant.
The
landlord has shown that he is in collusion with these offenders, by
falsely accusing me of offenses I have not committed. He has shown a
clear bias against me which is totally unwarranted.
More
harassment, threats and hostile shouting from outside my door by the
landlord:
"You
are going to talk to me right now!"
I
don't take orders from him. Who does he think he is?
"What,
have you got a board meeting going on in there?"
AS
IF it is any of his business why I am not available when he has not
given proper notice and thinks he can just barge his way in any time
he pleases. No, he cannot. He is entirely in the wrong.
"You
don't want to be in an adversarial relationship with me!"
No,
I would rather not be in an adversarial relationship. But he
has made the choice, as an aggressor against me, engaging in
intimidation tactics, harassment and threats, to declare himself my
adversary. His message is loud and clear. He wants an adversary, he's
got one. One who will never back down but will fight for justice.
"We
are either going to work together or else you will not be able to
stay here!"
He
thinks he can just show up at my door, with no prior notice, banging,
harassing, threatening me, and that will force me to talk to him, or
“work with him”? No, it does not work that way. Nobody
intimidates me.
"I
had to drive an hour to get here!"
Meaning:
his time is valuable, mine is not. As I have stated in letters to his
office, my time is no less valuable than his, nor any of his workers.
He has no right to expect that I am available any time he decides
will suit his convenience, no matter the inconvenience to me.
He
was shouting, threatening eviction.
On
what grounds? He has no grounds whatsoever.
He
said he has to do the renovation and the tenant can't be on the
property. He should have done the renovation long ago. He is to
blame, not I, for the fact that he has been cited for violations and
now will be forced to rectify the situation.
He
can't just force me off the property so he can do his renovation,
just because the Health Department has now cited him for violations.
That is not my fault. He and he alone is to blame. I am the victim,
as the tenant who has been forced to live in substandard conditions
due to his negligence.
I
told him that I will not tolerate this disrespectful treatment. He
yelled that I was the one who was disrespectful, which is an
outrageous lie.
Defending
myself against his aggression is not disrespect.
Holding
him accountable to rectify substandard conditions, under which I am
suffering and forced to pay for, is not disrespect.
Telling
him he has no right to come pounding on my door and demanding to be
let in, and that he must make an appointment, is not
disrespect.
Standing
up for myself against his false accusations and those of his tenants
is not disrespect.
It
is he, and he alone, who is disrespectful. And it will not be
tolerated.
Is
he living in a fantasy world? A world where he is the Lord of All He
Surveys and his tenants are serfs on his plantation, to be
subservient to his every whim.
It
is none of his business why I am not available at his whim.
More
arrogant statements, shouted through the door:
"I
have million dollar properties, I don't care about a few thousand
dollars!"
So
what? His boasting about his million dollar properties has nothing to
do with me or the rental for which I am paying. It is a totally
irrelevant issue.
He's
made it clear he cares nothing about his tenants, or the condition of
the property. He doesn't care about anything, except getting his
money. But his tenants don't get the value they are paying for, that
is not a problem for him. Not until the Health Department shows up to
cite him for violations. Then, he has a problem. And blames it on an
innocent tenant.
He
shouted that he will call the Health Department, and report that I
will not let him in.
If
he had given proper notice, as he is required to do, I would have
made myself available to let him in, at a mutually convenient time,
that is. Again it is all on him, and I have done nothing wrong.
He
shouted, in a state of apparent hysteria: “If you think you are so
smart, I am smarter than you!”
Where
this idiotic comment came from, I have no clue. He is free to believe
in his fantasies about his own intelligence, but this is completely
irrelevant to the issues at hand.
Then,
a truly unbelievable and outrageous false accusation, delivered in a
snide and mocking tone: He claimed there were “mental health
issues” because I would not let him in.
Only
a moron would make such an accusation. And he is the one behaving
like a lunatic, shouting and making a scene outside my house. It is
likely he has some “mental health issues.” Like maybe, delusions
of grandeur and omnipotence, that he can get away with forcing his
will on others. Unbelievable!
He
shouted, “I will go knock on doors right now!”, of those tenants
who claimed harassment.
What
did he expect to happen? That they would form a lynch mob? That they
would come out brandishing pitchforks and torches? A real life witch
hunt, with all the drama!
I
finally told him to get out of here, leave. Just do what you have to
do and I will do what I have to do. Next time, make an appointment.
He
left, hurling insults and laughing at what he seemed to think was his
own cleverness.
Frankly,
I don't think he's very bright, if he believes this is the way to
deal with his tenants, harassing and bullying them into submission. It may work with some, but never with me.
He
thinks he can just disregard the rights of people who are forced to
live in substandard conditions because he doesn't concern himself
with anything but money (his “million dollar properties”), while
he rips off the tenants and fails to maintain the property. He lacks
the most common decency and concern for others.
But
before I wrap up this report, just a few more comments, including
excerpts from a letter to an attorney who is advising me.
GENERAL
ISSUES:
Failure
to make necessary repairs in a timely manner, or not at all.
Failure
to provide proper maintenance of property on an ongoing basis (inside
and outside).
Disregarding
Tenant's complaints, both by phone and by letter, including certified
return receipt, over a period of years. I have never received a
response to any letter.
The
only way to get anything done is to keep calling the office
repeatedly. Unless it is an emergency (overflowing toilet, water
backing up under the sink, roof leaking, etc.) he will do nothing at
all. Unacceptable conditions persist for months with no relief.
Failure
to notify Tenant before sending workers for maintenance/repairs. I
have made it clear in writing and by telephone, repeatedly, that I
require minimum 24 hours notice if workers need access to my house.
No one is to enter my home when I am not there, unless by explicit
permission. I have explained that I am disabled, that I do not keep
'regular' hours, that I work at home, that I have an indoor cat who
is afraid of strangers, and that I am entitled to my privacy and
reasonable notice.
Yet
he sends workers when convenient only for him. In most cases I do not
allow them access, as I am not prepared to make myself available.
Then his employees from the office try to place the blame on me in
the false belief that I must be available 24/7 or suffer the
deprivation of necessary repairs.
Allowing
the property to become a hostile environment for Tenant by failing to
control aggressive/violative behavior of other tenants.
Such
as:
Tenants
creating regular disturbances on property which disturb the peace
and/or pose a threat to Tenant.
Harassment
by tenants against Tenant.
Tenants
making false complaints to landlord's office against Tenant, which
results in false complaints against Tenant by landlord's office. This
is harassment by landlord.
Landlord
has been advised (in writing and by phone) that I will not be
interrogated, nor my privacy invaded by his office, that the false
complaints are made by liars, and there is no actual cause for bias
against me.
I
have always paid the rent on time, no exceptions.
I
have never, at any time, caused any kind of disturbance on the
property.
I
have always been quiet and respectful of others on the property.
I
have never entered any tenant's yard or home, except by invitation or
explicit permission.
The
landlord's office refuses to name the person(s) who made the false
complaints, but have falsely cited me for offenses I have not
committed as a result of this.
In
general, I have been prevented from my right to quiet enjoyment of
the rental property for which I am paying a high rent by the
landlord's failure to make repairs and the hostile environment
created by other tenants.
*********
I
understand that this type of report may not be of interest to my
regular readers. However, this website is the only venue I have to
make reports on issues of concern to me.
This
harassment has caused extreme stress as well as emotional distress
for me and has negatively affected my health.
I have spent this entire day since the harassment by the landlord at 8:30 AM on the phone with attorneys, the
Health Department and others who have all been apprised of the
situation.
I
want this on the record in my own defense, as I have no idea what any
of these hostile individuals might do out of malice against me.
I
will continue to report on these issues with updates as they happen.
All
I ever wanted and had every reasonable expectation of having is the
quiet enjoyment of the rental property for which I am paying.
This
includes habitable living conditions and an end to all harassment.
I
intend to have that, whatever it takes.
I
intend to pursue justice and hold all offending parties accountable
for their actions.
Let
this be a warning to any such parties (named and unnamed) that I will
pursue any and all lawful and ethical means to protect my rights and in my own defense.
They are hereby warned: CEASE & DESIST
Barbara
Hartwell
Injured
Party Under Threat in Hostile Environment
October
11, 2023
RELATED
REPORTS
CONTINUED
HARASSMENT, SLANDER, FALSE COMPLAINTS & INVASIONS OF PRIVACY ON
RHINEBECK PROPERTY BY UNSCRUPULOUS TENANT TRACY KRAWITT
http://barbarahartwellvscia.blogspot.com/2023/08/additional-harassment-slander-false.html
FORMAL
COMPLAINT AGAINST TENANT TRACY KRAWITT TO LANDLORD OF RHINEBECK
PROPERTY
https://barbarahartwellvscia.blogspot.com/2023/02/formal-complaint-against-tenant-tracy.html
MULTIPLE
OFFENDER, HABITUAL LIAR TRACY KRAWITT MAKES ADDITIONAL FALSE
ACCUSATIONS, SLANDERS BARBARA HARTWELL IN REPORT TO LANDLORD ON
RENTAL PROPERTY
https://barbarahartwellvscia.blogspot.com/2023/02/multiple-offender-habitual-liar-tracy.html
HELLISH
HOWLING & HARASSMENT: Brought to My Neighborhood by Scofflaw,
Liar Tracy Krawitt & Associates
http://barbarahartwellvscia.blogspot.com/2023/02/hellish-howling-harassment-brought-to.html
Tracy
Krawitt, Irresponsible Owner of Howling Dog, Causes Constant Noise
Disturbance on Rhinebeck Property
http://barbarahartwellvscia.blogspot.com/2022/04/tracy-krawitt-irresponsible-owner-of.html
Tracy
Krawitt (aka SPACEY TRACY), the Neighbor from Hell: FORMAL COMPLAINT
TO POLICE & COMMENTARY
https://barbarahartwellvscia.blogspot.com/2020/01/tracy-krawitt-aka-spacey-tracy-neighbor.html
