LORAIN, OH – David Shapiro is a slumlord from Lorain County and that’s putting it mildly. When I first rented from him he made me sign 2 leases, strange I know, but it was for the sole purpose of him to commit fraud.  One lease for $1,000 a month and the second lease for $1,150. One was for cash payments that I never got a receipt for and the other was for agency assistance so he could milk the system and ultimately me for the extra money (via me applying from government assistance, grants, etc).

Shapiro filed for eviction a total of 4 times while I lived in his rundown property. When I was moving in I noticed there was a serious bed bug problem (what else could I do though, I had already given him all of my money and had absolutely nowhere else to go). So he did bring a exterminator out that time but this problem persisted through the course of my time living there and no more help was deemed necessary from David Shapiro.

The bed bug’s weren’t the only issues at his property sadly… Three months into our lease our upstairs bathroom leaked into my son’s bedroom and ruined his bed and as a result all my children’s summer clothes that were stored in the closet became moldy. Needless to say David didn’t feel responsible for replacing any of our things, in fact he never finished the project he started and we ended up having black mold in that room!!!  Along with this and the mold problem I put rent in escrow and by June Mr. Shapiro filed my first eviction. In a phone conversation he to me “that If I didn’t have the money I should go sell my a$$ on 28th street to get it.” To add more to this already diabolical nightmare of a situation he has a live in (prostitute) girlfriend Jennifer Dean who is a career crack smoker and prostitute. Ms. Dean was a former sponsee of mine in a local program. She would go get high and tell her boyfriend/sugar daddy (Mr. Shapiro) she was at my house doing step work. It didn’t take long for her to try and throw me under the bus claiming I was the one giving her drugs (typical narcissist) when in fact I was trying to help her find treatment.

Then came the second eviction (as a result of kicking out Shaprio’s human sex slave from my own property) as well as the constant phone harassment. As you may have figured out he lost that 1st eviction case. This second one he filed the same month I last paid rent and he would not except rent going forward. So that case was dismissed. He re-filed it again in November which was also dismissed because I had the money and he was un-willing to accept it. By this time the judge seemed to understand what was going on. Mr. Shapiro was livid (putting it mildly).  As a result of that dismissal, on that very same day he reported me to children services for abuse of my children and claimed that I was no drugs. Due to his false complaints CPS arrived at my front door, checked out the house, drug tested me and my husband and left. Now up to this point my stress level was insane!!!

Zero repairs are being done to the home I am renting at this period in time and because of the court cases I had to place my rent in escrow. Each time I was made to pay back rent and the issues to the house were never addressed because we never made it to a second cause hearing. Looking back and upon reflection I should have found an attorney,  but I am on disability with 3 kids so it’s simply easier said than done. I truly couldn’t afford an attorney and he very well knew that. I was getting some assistance through state and local grants to get bills paid but Mr. Shapiro was defrauding these places by submitting a bogus lease. Now, the November filing came into April and I was struggling this time. Still no repairs, constantly being harassed even with a check being wrote to Mr. Shapiro for 4 months rent (which he never cashed). Meanwhile I fell down the stairs (a step where the wood was loose and the carpet had torn away) as I was holding my 3 year old son. We both fell down a flight of 15 stairs and we were both hurt. Nothing broken but I had had enough. He came a week after my rental check of 4 months was sent to him as my arm was in a sling from the fall.  At that point in time I told him he wasn’t getting another dime. The night before this happened the entire front gutter had fallen off and he still demanded more rent.

At last, he won the final eviction and I was set to move out July 7th 2025. Two days before I was sent to move I got stuck out of town and couldn’t be back till the morning of the move but I still had it set up for a truck to come move my things prior to the sheriff coming at 9am. Mr. Shapiro brought a dumpster the night before and a bunch of people “telling them to grab what they want a throw the rest out”. This was 24 hours before the house was his to do so. By the time I got back he had recklessly thrown and stole just about everything I owned. All I have left is some furniture that I had moved the previous weekend while this man lives in a mansion on Oakhill Drive!!!!!!! We went from celebrating Thanksgiving with them one year to him destroying everything I worked for my entire life in a weekend.

ERRATIC SAYS: There is definitely a special place in hell for people like David Shapiro, but he’s on our radar now…

Because of David Shaprio my kids had to go stay with family because we are now homeless on top of having lost all of our possessions and my husband and I are living out of a hotel (intermittently). We are doing the best that we can but rent prices are so high and housing assistance here can take years. We definitely need some prayers and good vibes our way. Thanks for reading and please don’t rent from this man. Lastly I have reported him the ODJFS for fraud.

THE BOTTOM LINE

SCUMBAGGED Tip:  It’s safe to say to stay far away from David Shapiro and any of his properties.  Anyone who refuses to fix up their property while charging egregious sums, filled with bed bugs at that, deserves zero tenants.  Especially considering his predatorial behavior and his nature and excess greed for more has no bounds.  Why don’t you pick on someone your own size Mr. Shapiro and try suing us and see how that fucking goes for you?