AG sues HavenBrook landlord for ‘uninhabitable’ rental homes
Arianna Anderson and her family have suffered through a number of issues in their HavenBrook home rental on Girard Avenue North, including flooding in the basement. Photo by David Pierini
By David Pierini, Editor
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison is suing a hedge fund that owns more than 200 rental homes in North Minneapolis for failing to make repairs and keeping its properties “uninhabitable” for tenants.
The lawsuit, filed in Ramsey County on Feb. 10, alleges HavenBrook Homes violated laws relating to lead-paint removal and trying to force tenants from their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In January, North News profiled some of the Northside tenants who have been battling HavenBrook and its owner, Pretium Partners LLC, for repairs to make their homes safe. The tenants are organized by United Renters for Justice/ Inquilinxs Unidxs Por Justicia.
Ellison’s action signals a measure of justice for the tenants, some of whom have traveled to Washington D.C. to testify in Congress against HavenBrook. In December, United Renters for Justice tried to block the State Board of Investment from making a deal with one of Pretium’s investors until property managers responded to repair requests.
Ellison, a member of that board, told tenants his office was aware of the complaints and hinted his office would act by saying “It’s nothing I can ignore.”
“He hit hard, didn’t he?” said Shanika Henderson, who has lived with a host of problems in a HavenBrook home on Girard Avenue North. “I hope as a collective, we will have our demands met. Why couldn’t the owners take care of these repairs in a timely fashion? They have the capacity and they certainly have the money to do
it.” The lawsuit accuses Pretium Partners, which holds $30 billion in assets nationwide, of operating a profit-maximizing business model that controls HavenBrook through lawyers of shell companies. Pretium owns more than 600 rental homes around the Twin Cities and 70,000 nationwide.
“It’s almost impossible to afford your life and live with dignity, safety, and respect when your landlord puts their profits ahead of your health and safety,” Attorney General Ellison said. “I filed this lawsuit because it’s my job to protect Minnesotans from fraud and abuse, and tenants are consumers of housing who are entitled to the same protections as all consumers. HavenBrook’s strategy of extracting profit from their tenants by claiming to provide them with prompt, high-quality maintenance and repair but actually leaving them in uninhabitable homes isn’t just shameful, it’s deceptive, fraudulent, and violates Minnesota law.”
“I’m holding them accountable for it.”
According to the complaint filed in Ramsey County District Court against HavenBrook and five related companies, the owners operated a deliberate strategy to extract profits from tenants that “severely and systematically” understaffed and under-resourced the upkeep of properties.
Some of the resulting conditions include no heat, backed-up sewer system, doors and windows that do not close, mold and rodent infestation Ellison also said property managers failed to take mandatory lead-based safety precautions.
The average HavenBrook home is 80 years old.
“Havenbrook further violated Minnesota law by misrepresenting to current and prospective tenants they provide 24/7, around-the-clock, same-day service for emergency repairs when in reality, they often ignore urgent repairs requests or make shoddy repair if they respond to tenants’ request at all,” according to the complaint.
In a statement to North News, Pretium said staffing issues were related to the pandemic and that its purchase of the Havenbrook homes in 2020 was not finalized until 2021. The statement also said Pretium was dedicated to enhancing “the resident experience” and said it has thus far invested $50 million for renovations and repairs to “pre-existing conditions.”