An NBC10 investigation found a husband and wife have defrauded small property owners for thousands of dollars, lived in homes rent free, and have been seemingly…
"Professional tenants" is a term used in housing circles for those who have figured out how to game a system in Massachusetts, a state with a national reputation for being pro-tenant.found a husband and wife have defrauded small property owners for thousands of dollars, lived in homes rent free, and have been seemingly getting away with it for the past two decades. In housing circles, they are known as “professional tenants” because they make a living by scamming landlords.
The entire ordeal took about six months. On the eve of the eviction, there was still a last-minute plea from Russell Callahan about accessing funds from his work retirement account so he could stay in the property. In 2016, Tyler Lynch was a recent college graduate preparing for his first deployment with the Navy.
During that conversation, Russell Callahan told him that he had not been in an accident. Instead, he blamed his wife for spending the rent money on other items and said the couple was getting a divorce. Lynch, now a lieutenant commander with the Navy living in the Dallas area, was stunned when we contacted him eight years later about his landlord nightmare.
On the day they handed over the keys, Hovhannisyan said there were moving trucks at the property already loaded up with the Callahans’ possessions. In retrospect, he now realizes those trucks had come straight from the Callahans’ eviction at their previous rental property. These are professional con artists. I realized this is not some isolated thing. There are actually people who live like this.Like several other landlords we spoke with, Hovyannisyan believes he was targeted because he is an immigrant who is unfamiliar with the legal system and eviction process.
The Callahans showed up to get a tour of the property and Mallaghan remembers how they gave the impression they would really enjoy living in the space. “They always had an excuse of why the money wasn’t there and they were working on it,” Mallaghan said. “They just preyed on my forgiveness and compassion and were able to live there rent-free.”
Russell and Linda Callahan showed up to look at the home and said they were trying to get a loan to buy some land, so they had already assembled a credit report, background check and pay stubs for their bank. “I don’t credit your testimony, sir,” the judge told Callahan. “I actually don’t credit anything you said. I find you to be evasive and not particularly forthcoming.”
The home on Egret Circle is the last known address for the Callahans. No new eviction cases have surfaced since movers packed them up last December. “Thank you so much for your decision on selecting my family,” the message said. “I understand the financial agreement to be met. We will respect your home as if it were our own. Enjoy your day. I know you just made ours great.”
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