Should Tenants Ignore The Law

[markk1pe]

I don't know the law in New York regarding yuor situation, but as a landlord I will share with you what happens to me when someone doesn't have the money to pay the rent and they are not happy for some reason or another. I always keep my places in top repair, but sometimes they wreck the place themselves and don't want to stay there anymore. So they find another place and move their stuff out in the middle of the night and don't leave any forwarding address. Of course they forfeit their deposit, but they don't seem to care.

I suppose I could try to report them to the credit rating agencies, but it's too much trouble and I wouldn't make any money off of it. I could try to track them down and take them to small claims court, but that costs money and even if you win you are the one that has to try to get your money, the court does not get it for you. It is very rare to actually collect from a deadbeat renter, so I usually don't bother, unless the place is damaged so bad (especially if done so maliciously) that it becomes worth it.

So what I would suggest is to NOT go to the post office and sign for the letter, and refuse to sign for anything delivered. Find another place and move out of that moldy crappy broken house to something less expensive that you can afford. I wouldn't pay for the back rents because you had a verbal agreement. He'd have a hard time proving otherwise in court since he did not act in the past. So legally he might have a case, but it wouldn't be a strong one and he would be foolish to pursue it.

Now I would never recommend anyone do that to a landlord that has taken good care of your place and given you ample notice to move out and not tried to charge for previously agreed upon discounts, but your current landlord is acting like a cad. Move out, don't tell anyone where you are moving, and don't leave a forwarding address.

[Dogmatique]

I don't think you should follow the previous advice at all.

Check the forums here - and indeed, on other legal forums. Landlords REGULARLY take tenants to court for non-payment. And they frequently win. The landlord who posted also apparently has little knowledge of what is legal and what isn't. Advising you to not pay is foolish, I'm afraid. Verbal agreements are incredibly difficult to prove - and the burden of proof would be on YOU, not the landlord.

Frankly what he's suggesting is just plain old foolish.

[markk1pe]

If you say so mate.

I've taken 3 case to court for back rent, won 2, a 3rd has been in the system for 60 days and the jusdge still has not received the paperwork from the clerk (they are backed up). Of the 2 case I did win, that I paid hundreds to the lawyer up front, I have not reveived one penny from the former tenants.

They did not return the court required paperwork so I can not find what they own to auction or garnish and I can not find them (no forwarding address, not showing up in paid for people searches online). One case is over 4 years old. The courts offer absolutely no help in this matter, I have to find them then get them served then file for another hearing, etc.

One other case where I did win cost of courts the defendant paid it into the clerk. The clerk said I have to file a motion and pay $50 and wait until the motion is heard by the judge and wait for the clerk to act just to get MY MONEY back from them.

Maybe you can tell me how I can get the money I paid to lawyers back, much less the back rent. Thats not even including the amount of time I wasted filing all the different papers at each step and sitting in a court room waiting for them to show up. Like I wrote, I don't bother with the courts anymore for back rent.