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Cleveland Tenants Organization

Our mission is to preserve and expand the supply of safe, decent, fair, affordable and accessible rental housing in Greater Cleveland by: Informing citizens of their rights and duties in rental housing; Representing tenants and the interest of tenants in the preservation and promotion of rental housing rights; Empowering tenants individually and collectively to represent themselves and their interests; Advocating for the needs of low and moderate income tenants; Resolving disputes between landlords and tenants; Preventing homelessness; and Combating discrimination in housing based on race, religion, color, gender, handicap, familial status, military status, social/economic class, and sexual orientation.

Mike Piepsny, Executive Director

Cleveland Tenants Organization provides information about the Ohio Landlord-Tenant Law to assist tenants living in properties facing foreclosure.

The Cleveland Tenants Organization was formed in 1975, after the passage of the Ohio Landlord-Tenant Law, in order to assist landlords and tenants in understanding the new law and their rights and responsibilities outlined in the law.  Over time, the organization has continued to grow and expand to include programs and services for Greater Clevelanders concerned with rental information, foreclosure/eviction diversion, community education, equal housing opportunities, healthy homes and homeless prevention.

CTO through the years…

In 2010, CTO reached out to and assisted over 35,000 households.

CTO has a staff of 10 persons and an annual budget of $500,000 and is governed by a 21 person Board of Trustees representing a broad spectrum of the community. CTO has approximately 600 individual members and over 1,000 affiliate members who belong to local tenant organizations.

The Cleveland Tenants Organization is proud to be a member of the United Way of Cleveland.