Melissa Berkelhammer evicted? According to several reports, Berkelhammer and her mother, JoEllen Berkelhammer, have been both kicked out of a luxurious apartment. The residence belongs to their former friend, Julianne Di Palma and her mom, Joycelyn Engle Di Palma, and they were squatting it for over one year.
Both Melissa Berkelhammer and her mother, JoEllen Berkelhammer, have been evicted from the fancy Manhattan home belonging to Julianne Di Palma and her mom, Joycelyn Engle Di Palma. They were squatting the elegant location for over a year.
Berkelhammer lied to her former friend, Julianne Di Palma, telling her that her house was being renovated, and she needed a place to stay for a few weeks. The weeks turned into months and the months into a year.
The Di Palmas faced an uphill battle to get the Berkelhammers out of their home because in states like California and New York, squatters have rights. Moreover, in some cases they can use what is known as the adverse possession. Here is what an expert has to say on the matter:
There are a couple of avenues the squatter may pursue. First, after the person has been there at least a month, he is treated as a tenant “at will” and can only be removed by the owner issuing a 30 day written notice to terminate. If the person doesn’t leave, then the owner must issue a 3-Day Notice to Quit, and then if the person hasn’t left, file a petition with the housing court for an eviction order. Once the eviction order has been obtained, the owner may have the sheriff forcibly evict this “tenant.”
Melissa Berkelhammer, who might have read the numerous stories about squatters dragging homeowners to court and winning, refused to leave the home for over one year.
According to a close source, during that period Berkelhammer and her mother made it impossible for Julianne Di Palma and her mom, Joycelyn Engle Di Palma, to sleep at night. The pair often fought and broke things, which forced the homeowners to call the police on several occasions. A source revealed:
“Julianne locks her door and puts on this ocean wave sound device on her phone so she doesn’t have to hear them. She’s called the police a few times because of violent situations. She can’t use her kitchen or entertain because Melissa’s clothes are everywhere. Julianne thinks Melissa is very talented and there are no hard feelings, she just wants her life back.”
Frustrated and feeling betrayed by her friend, Di Palma first reached out to Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney of New York and asked her for help.
However, when the Berkelhammer duo insisted on being roommates with the Di Palmas, they contacted the city’s Marshall, who forced the Princeton and Harvard graduate and her 70-year-old mother out.
The Di Palmas had another urgent reason to evict the pair; the building manager had given them until July 10 to get rid of the Berkelhammers, or they would lose their home.
The 38-year-old blogger and socialite and her parent are now living in a hotel as they try to advance with their lives. Melissa Berkelhammer is set to begin a new job soon; she will be a hostess at Joey Allaham’s kosher steakhouse, Prime KO.
The socialite needs all the money she can get because she is due back in court on August 17 to face some serious charges. She was allegedly caught stealing over $4000 worth of merchandise including a $2,700 Christian Dior bag and a $320 Milly skirt from Bergdorf.
According to her attorney, she was not stealing, she was just looking for her mother and briefly stepped out of the store with the items. Her countless money problems pushed her to go on Facebook and beg her friends for a donation of $65,000 to rent a new home. When no one replied, Melissa Berkelhammer angrily wrote:
“Omg I can’t believe I just completely humiliated myself for no responses whatsoever. Thank you all. Thanks a lot . . . I tried to be nice and humble about this but now I’m just damn angry. At ALL of you.”
What are your thoughts on Melissa Berkelhammer’s eviction?
