On Friday afternoon, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong reacted on social media to the letter sent on Thursday by a lawyer representing the owners of Concierge Apartments. Tong stated: “We’re pressing for rental credits, reimbursement for out of pocket expenses, and the option for tenants to void their leases.”
Here is the text of Tong’s video remarks:
It’s Friday afternoon, and temperatures are dropping down to minus two, minus three in the next couple of days, and the tenants at concierge apartments and Rocky Hill have now been kicked out of their homes, no heat, no hot water, and I just got a letter from one of Concierge’s lawyers that wasn’t just tone deaf. I can I can only describe it as as like callous and indifferent.
And so I just responded with my own letter, and I made it crystal clear that Concierge has to step up all of their managers out there in California, their owners of this $15 billion private equity backed real estate conglomerate, you got to step up right now and make sure that every tenant has access to quality housing, a roof over their heads for children and families and every tenant.You have to make sure that you take care of all of your tenants and their out of pocket expenses. I don’t want to hear about renters insurance. This is on you: lost food, lost medicine, lost time at work. This is on you, Concierge, and the billions of billions of dollars you have backing you up.
Also, tenants should get up to a year break on their rent. You have failed them for years and years and years. That is only fair, and if tenants want to move out, if they don’t want to put up with this anymore, they should be allowed to break their leases because you’re in breach of your obligations to them.
And so I have a very simple message to Concierge on Friday afternoon, as it starts to freeze here in Connecticut: do better, now.
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