To enact sections 121.086, 2703.10, 5321.20, 5321.21, 5321.22, and 5321.23 of the Revised Code to require a clerk of courts to notify tenants when a foreclosure action is filed, to require the Director of Commerce to prepare a publication to assist owners and tenants of foreclosed properties, to require clerks of courts to distribute that publication, to require landlords to notify tenants when a property is foreclosed and when a sale is scheduled, to enable tenants to terminate a rental agreement on a foreclosed property, to provide for continuance of a rental agreement after a foreclosure sale, and to provide civil remedies for a tenant whose landlord violates the bill's provisions.

Section 1. That sections 121.086, 2703.10, 5321.20, 5321.21, 5321.22, and 5321.23 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec. 121.086.  The director of commerce shall prepare a publication for distribution to owners and tenants of residential properties that are the subject of foreclosure actions. The publication shall include a list of available resources to assist owners of residential properties to retain their property and to assist tenants in obtaining assistance if relocation is necessary. The director shall make the publication available to clerks of courts in this state for distribution to owners and tenants of residential properties that are undergoing foreclosure.

Sec. 2703.10.  (A) When a holder of a mortgage files a complaint to initiate a foreclosure action on a residential property, along with the summons that is served on the owner of the property, the clerk of courts shall provide a copy of the publication on foreclosure the director of commerce prepares pursuant to section 121.086 of the Revised Code.

(B)(1) Within seven days after issuing a summons for service on the property owner in a foreclosure action described in division (A) of this section, the clerk of courts shall send written notice of the foreclosure action by ordinary mail to the attention of the residents at the address of the property. The notice shall include the following statement:

"The holder of a mortgage has filed a complaint with this court to initiate a foreclosure action against the property at this address . . . . . . . . For more information, you should contact the clerk of this court at . . . . . . . . (phone number). A sale at auction could occur as a result of this foreclosure."

(2) The clerk shall enclose with the notice of foreclosure a copy of the publication on foreclosure the director of commerce prepares pursuant to section 121.086 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 5321.20.  (A) A landlord who is the owner of a property that is the subject of a foreclosure action shall do all of the following:

(1) Within thirty days after receiving a summons that contains a notice of foreclosure, provide written notice of that foreclosure to any tenant of the property;

(2) Include a notice of the foreclosure in any written rental agreement the landlord enters into after receiving the summons with a notice of the foreclosure action;

(3) Provide a written notice of foreclosure to a tenant at the time of any oral rental agreement the landlord enters into after the landlord has received a summons with a notice of foreclosure;

(4) Provide each tenant at the property with written notice of the date, time, and place of the scheduled sale of the foreclosed property at least twenty-one days before the date of the sale at auction.

(B) Any written notice the landlord provides pursuant to this section shall include a statement in substantially the following form:

"This property is undergoing foreclosure. For more information on this action, you should contact the ..........(your county) Clerk of Courts for the Court of Common Pleas, ..........(address), at ..........(phone number).

A sale at auction could occur as a result of this foreclosure. Currently, [the sale of this property has been set for ..........(time, date, and place)] or [no date for sale of this property has been established]. Ohio law requires that I provide you with written notice of the sale at least twenty-one days before it takes place.

If there is a sale of this property at auction, your current rental agreement will convert to a month-to-month rental agreement upon the sale of the property.

Note: With a month-to-month rental agreement, either the tenant or the landlord may terminate the agreement by providing written notice of termination to the other at least thirty days prior to a date on which the rent payment normally is due. The rental agreement then terminates on that rent payment date."

Sec. 5321.21.  (A) Any tenant of a residential property that is the subject of a foreclosure action brought by a mortgage holder may terminate that tenancy at any time after the holder of the mortgage files a complaint with a court to initiate the foreclosure action. To terminate the tenancy, the tenant shall provide written notice of termination to the landlord at the place where rent normally is paid. The notice shall state the date upon which the tenancy will terminate, which shall not be earlier than thirty days following the next date on which rent is due. The tenant is responsible for all rent until the termination date.

(B) A landlord shall return any deposit to a tenant who terminates a rental agreement pursuant to this section in the same manner as this chapter provides for tenancies that end pursuant to the terms of the rental agreement. A tenant who terminates a rental agreement pursuant to this section has all the rights of a tenant whose rental agreement expires pursuant to its own terms.

Sec. 5321.22.  Any rental agreement for a residential property that is the subject of a foreclosure action shall convert to a month-to-month rental agreement upon a court's approval of a sale at auction pursuant to section 2329.31 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 5321.23.  In addition to any other remedy under law, a tenant may recover the greater of actual damages or one month's rent plus the security deposit amount and reasonable attorney's fees, obtain injunctive relief to enforce the rental agreement, or both, if a landlord or a successor in interest violates section 5321.20 of the Revised Code, fails to provide a written notice that section 5321.20 of the Revised Code requires, or fails to honor a rental agreement established under section 5321.22 of the Revised Code.