Real estate giant Douglas Elliman is offering up its own high-powered lawyers to help an elderly Upper West Side couple boot a “roommate from hell” who recently worked for the company.
After The Post exclusively reported how alleged moocher Lawrence Lee was making life hell for Eugene and Nina Sarver — taking over their West 97th Street apartment and using legal loopholes to avoid paying rent for a year — the Sarvers were ecstatic at Douglas Elliman’s response.
Following last week’s report, Douglas Elliman also said the 30-something Lee is no longer with the company, and agreed to pay $12,518 he apparently owes in rent and utility costs to Eugene, 78, who uses a wheelchair and suffers from severe Parkinson’s, and Nina, 74, who has dementia.
“We’re very elated that Douglas Elliman took this very seriously and reached out to help,” said Eugene Sarver. “And we’re also really happy that they got rid of Lawrence so fast.”
The Sarvers began renting Lee a room for $992 a month two years ago. They claim Lee is physically and verbally abusive, a serial eavesdropper and a filthy pig whose poor hygiene habits bring rodents and other pests to the apartment.
The couple says the experience has them so stressed they’ve been in and out of hospitals the past year for heart conditions and other ailments while trying to get Lee evicted.
The couple now stays 10 miles away at a Bronx nursing home, while Lee has free reign over their rent-subsidized, $2,200-a-month, three-bedroom, two-bathroom bargain that includes plush office space — all while they continue paying bills to avoid losing the apartment.
Eviction proceedings against Lee have been held up for the past year because he has repeatedly applied for aid through the state’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program, records show.
By law, he can’t get tossed out the apartment if he has appeals pending — even though records provided by the Sarvers show he’s been rejected multiple times and simply continues to circumvent the system by re-applying for assistance.
The Sarver’s lawyer, Dustin Bowman, said he welcomes assistance from Douglas Elliman lawyers and credited The Post report for “quickly” helping provide his clients some “immediate relief.”
Lee didn’t return messages.
