We live in California, we rented our house out a house in Indiana. Our renters abandoned the property and moved to Flordia. They still owe us half the deposit, they left the house full of garbage, they destroyed the carpet ($3000 worth), and they still owe 5 months of the lease. We got lucky to track them down because of a neighbor. I would just like to know all my legal options. I want my money and I will use every option I have whether it be sue, leins, lein warrants, whatever. So my question is, how can I go about fighting back? How can I get my money? What are my options?
2007-05-08 12:02:56 · 7 answers · asked by Courtney & Ryan S 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
I don't know. But, I feel bad, for you. Don't let these people get away with what they did to you. I hope someone in Yahoo land, can assist you with this. Good Luck.
2007-05-08 12:10:35 · answer #1 · answered by That one 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You need to file a claim in the Indiana courts. You need to serve the other party using the rules of the court in effect, probably small claim court rules although I do not know the limits in Indiana. Carefully create a timeline with both parties names one above the other. Recreate all the events. 1) Rented property to so and so with agreement(see exhibit A), 2) Asked for deposit on this date, etc etc. Attach photos and clearly show which item they refer to on the timeline. Here is the rub...your damages. Your duty is to fix and rent the property. The damages stop when the new renter takes over. The other party will owe you for the rent up to the point the other renter started to pay. Here is an important point - get a lawyer...I am not one nor are many of those givingyou advise here.
2007-05-08 12:23:08 · answer #2 · answered by tk 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Have you tried finding a new tenant for the house? While you are in for getting a good deal from them (assuming they have assests for you to be paid from and that they don't file bankruptcy) you also have a duty to try and fix the place up and get a new tenant to offset the lose in rent. (If you try but can't find a tenant then you can ask the court for the 5 months rent)
Hopefully you had a written lease and it detailed what they where responsible for. A court is also going to have a hard time understanding why you never collected the deposit. Take photos of the damage, but remember that they'll probably argue that the damage was either 1)That why when they moved in, or 2)the damage was normal wear and tear from the state the carpet was in when the moved in.
2007-05-08 12:16:05 · answer #3 · answered by caffeyw 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You have the legal right to sue them, but good luck getting the money. If they had the money they would have paid the rent. Talk to a lawyer and mean while, clean and repair the property, but take pictures first. And then rent it out again and do a background check on new tenant.
2007-05-09 02:50:59 · answer #4 · answered by Molly 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You may want to consult an attorney, I would talk to a real estate attorney first. They should be able to point you in the right direction. Maybe 2 one in each state. Find out where you would be better filing suite, and who has jurisdiction in a case like that. It will cost you to go after them, but I think that you should. I cannot stand people like that. I know people like that.
2007-05-08 12:17:49 · answer #5 · answered by HappyGoLucky 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Would you like some cheese with your whine? Get over it. Clean the place up and rent the house again. But this time, be a little more careful about checking references. -RKO- 05/08/07
2007-05-08 12:10:14 · answer #6 · answered by -RKO- 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Consult a lawyer.
2007-05-08 12:09:53 · answer #7 · answered by csucdartgirl 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋