There are 50 holes in the walls and every door is broken and kicked in. What can I do to these people short of hiring a lawyer? The lawyer costs $1000 just to start. Too expensive. They have moved 2 doors down and laugh at me when I pass. Small claims court says I have the burden of discovery..I have to follow them to serve them papers and garnish wages I have to have addresses and places of employment. Don't I have any rights? This was a criminal act and the law says it's civil.
2006-10-30 08:38:41 · 7 answers · asked by debbie2243 7 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
If the law says it is a civil matter, then you have to fight it thusly.
Small claims court is not that difficult. Burden of discovery? A breeze. You document with pictures and quotes and anything else you can think of to show the damage. You also present documentation of condition when they moved in. It is nice if a 3rd party like Section 8 or the city inspected it as part of the tenancy, as that is a third party.
The difficult part is indeed collecting. You can send notice of judgement to the credit agencies, which might help hurt them for future landlords and renting.
Good luck. Unfortunately many states and communities pass laws that make it look like landlords are rich and greedy (because some bad ones are) and tenants are always victims.
2006-10-30 08:45:03 · answer #1 · answered by kingstubborn 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Sue them in small claims court. The statute of limitations in Indiana is $6K. You should check your state. The beauty of small claims court is that the rules of evidence are not as strict and you CAN represent yourself, although you have to prove the defendants received notice of the claim and the hearing.
You should check around for different prices from an attorney. I'm not an attorney, but if you could get a good price, I believe you would be good for you to have an attorney. What about just having the attorney write the tenants a demand letter? That shouldn't be too $$$$.
Take pictures, video tape the premises, keep your receipts for any repairs you are forced to incur, payment of court costs, the amount of loss rents...etc., document, document, document your losses. You might be able to pay a small fee to a local collection agency to find out their places of employment.
FYI - have them sign a lease and make sure that lease includes a place for their social security number and their driver's license number. You might want to get a copy of their driver's license number and their license plate number. These bits make it easier to find bad tenants.
To help prevent this problem, you should always ask and followup with previous landlords.
GOOD LUCK.
2006-10-30 17:35:12 · answer #2 · answered by vbrink 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is civil. Now you have the option of reporting to the credit agency the monies that these people owe in terms of rent for the time gone and the damage done minus the deposit they gave you. They will never be able to rent again, and if they ever try to buy a home, they'll have to pay you first.
Move quickly to get the house rented, you're losing dough while it's unoccupied.
You can also go through your local small claims court system for a judgement.
2006-10-30 16:44:44 · answer #3 · answered by Manny 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I dont know what you can do this time but I know how to stop it from happening again. Next time you rent the place make sure the day they move in you go over there and take pictures of the place and make sure they know your doing it. Then you will have proof when they move that the place didnt look like that when they moved in. For sure report them to all three credit services. For probably 2 or 300 hundred you could get a PI to find the addresses you need.
2006-10-30 17:42:08 · answer #4 · answered by elaeblue 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This is after the fact.
Your mistake was the way you rented out the place.
Next renter.
Ask for at least one month rent in advance.
Ask for at least one month in security deposit.
This is deducted or refunded for damages when they move out again.
This gives you at least two month in advance.
Take pictures before they move in.
They fall behind on rent.
Put their stuff out in the street and change the locks, then call the police as soon one of them mentions any kind of a threat to do bodily harm.
If your place is not a slum ask for three month worth of rent in advance.
Cut your loses and do not make the same mistakes again.
Once the word is out your a tough but fair Land lady you will get the respect you deserve.
2006-10-30 16:57:09 · answer #5 · answered by r_e_a_l_miles 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You need to contact me as soon as possible and get the protection you need. I provide a service that will take care of issues like this. Don't let them get away with actions like this! You need to protect your investments and get access to your Legal Rights. I can get you in touch with an Attorney/Law Firm in your State, for only a $1.00 a day. They will review unlimited documents/contracts, you can call them anytime (day or night).
Please get in touch with me ASAP.
Jon
2006-10-30 17:51:23 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Wow, to bad. Some firms will give you free advice. You might want to check with Legal Aid as well
2006-10-30 16:42:12 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋