West Oak Lane renters could receive cash refunds under new class-action settlement

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Tenants at Bentley Manor in West Oak Lane are celebrating.

A Philadelphia judge granted preliminary approval this week to a class-action settlement residents reached with Odin Properties over illegal rent collection.

If given final approval, Odin would be required to provide roughly $142,000 in relief.

More than half of the money would go directly to the building’s tenants in the form of cash refunds, according to court documents. The company would  also have to forgive nearly $67,000 in unpaid rent and associated fees or interest.

“We all deserve a safe place to live, no matter who we are,” said Dawn Colbourne, a Bentley Manor tenant and named plaintiff, in a statement. “This agreement is a step forward in making sure that happens, and I’m glad that we’re taking this step together.”

The settlement stems from a lawsuit filed last March against Odin and two related entities. In it, tenants alleged that Odin demanded and collected rent from tenants at Bentley Manor for months despite city inspectors finding the 71-unit building to be an “unsafe structure.” The dangerous conditions included “loose and missing bricks” and a “leaning parapet” on the roof, according to the suit.

City and state law requires landlords to keep their properties safe and habitable. In Philadelphia, violators are barred from collecting rent until the property is compliant.

Odin has since made the necessary repairs, but the company is now poised to pay tenants for the period during which it was collecting rent while the building posed an “immediate danger or hazard” to residents.

“Our residents are incredibly important to us and have been since our founding. All of our properties are free and clear of City of Philadelphia violations and current on our licensure, and we look forward to being assets for our communities long into the future,” said Philip Balderston, CEO and founder of Odin Properties, in a statement.

The city’s Department of Licenses and Inspections deemed Bentley Manor unsafe in November 2024, giving Odin 30 days to make repairs to avoid falling out of compliance with the city’s rental code.

According to the lawsuit, the company did not appeal the notice and failed to meet the deadline, forfeiting its ability to collect rent from tenants. But over the next four months, the suit alleges, Odin illegally collected rent, leading tenants to take the unusual step of filing a proposed class-action lawsuit against their landlord.

A judge gave initial approval to the settlement Monday. It will now be the subject of a hearing set for Oct. 26, during which the court is expected to make a final determination on the settlement.

Under the agreement, individual cash refunds will differ depending on the “amount of rent and associated late fees each settlement class member paid for tenancy … compared to the total amount of rent and associated late fees paid by all settlement class members” between Dec. 14, 2024, and April 28, 2025.