Thanks for the quick reply. Here are the answers to your questions. I’ve tried to separate them to the best of my ability so they are easy to follow.

Should read:

My Original Statement
Your Question
My Answer

So we agree to vacate the premises under the condition that we can defer our current months’ rent. They agree and let us know that as long as the property is clean and there is no damage they will not seek any damages.

This is a written settlement agreement? A consent judgment? Something else?

We made an agreement via e-mail after the pretrial but before the actual trial. When we went to the trial hearing and both parties told the judge the settlement agreement. As part of the agreement their lawyer wanted to keep an open pretrial hearing for damages for after we moved out just in case there was damaged the house. Their lawyer stated that they wouldn’t proceed with the pretrial for damages if the house was in good condition and would drop it. We agreed because we kept the house in good condition and didn’t think there would be any issues.


Now I have a pretrial hearing scheduled.

On the old case to enforce your... settlement? Consent judgment? On a new case?

This pretrial hearing was scheduled as part of the original lawsuit as mentioned above. We were only going to have a pretrial for damages if they found that the home was damaged during the inspection. I believe it was just a continued part of the original eviction complaint.


When we moved into the property the flooring was already heavily damaged and scraped up.

Did you complete a move-in checklist? Did you take pictures at any time?

We did complete a move-in checklist. The landlord gave us one to complete, which we did. However she was going to come back to pick up the checklist and have me sign the lease, but she never came back or called about it. We did not take any pictures of the property when we moved in.


Also, the plumbing work was another preexisting issue already there when we moved in. The landlord had plumbers come over to the property 8-9 times to work on a leaky pipe.

Describe the plumbing issue for us. Most plumbing issues would not be a tenant's fault.

The downstairs tenant called the landlord to complain about water leaking when we took showers in our unit. Visit #1: The landlord had a plumber come out to look at the problem, he told us we needed to install shower splash guard so water wouldn’t spill outside and drip downstairs. We installed them. However the downstairs tenant said water was still leaking. Visit #2: Another plumber came out and did some work on the shower. They installed a complete shower door; it was originally a plastic shower curtain. The downstairs tenant told the landlord that water was still leaking. Visit #3: Another plumber came and resealed the shower pan thinking that water was leaking inside the shower behind the shower pan. However water was still leaking after they resealed the shower pan. Visit #4: A plumber came out and resealed the entire bathroom floor with hot tar and installed new tile. However water was still leaking downstairs. We had plumbers come to the house a few other time and they did some work on the downstairs unit, but they never fixed the problem before we agreed to leave.


I NEVER SIGNED THE LEASE.

You previously told us, "I signed a 1 year lease and have been renting the property since February 23, 2012". What is it that you signed, if not a lease?

Sorry for the confusion, there was a 1 year lease agreement signed with the landlord. However I moved to the property about a month after the other two roommates moved in. Both roommates signed the lease with the landlord. The landlord knew I was moving in a few weeks later and was going to have me sign the lease once I got there. However once I moved in she never came over to have me sign the lease. So there is a lease, but I personally never signed it.


Also, the landlord left us with a worksheet to complete which showed the condition of the house prior to move in. We completed it; however she was going to pick it up when she came over to have me sign the lease. But she never did. So we have a completed worksheet showing that mostly everything in the house was dirty or needs repair.

Your roommates moved in separately - they didn't complete a checklist?

My roommates moved in 3-4 weeks prior to me moving in. The landlord gave them a checklist the day they moved in and signed the lease. They completed and signed the checklist. However the landlord told my roommates that she would pick up the checklist when she came over to have me sign the lease. But she never came over. So we have a completed checklist that was signed by my two roommates. The checklist states that the flooring is severely damaged and needs repair.

- - - Updated - - -

Thanks for the quick reply. Here are the answers to your questions. I’ve tried to separate them to the best of my ability so they are easy to follow.

Should read:

My Original Statement
Your Question
My Answer

So we agree to vacate the premises under the condition that we can defer our current months’ rent. They agree and let us know that as long as the property is clean and there is no damage they will not seek any damages.

This is a written settlement agreement? A consent judgment? Something else?

We made an agreement via e-mail after the pretrial but before the actual trial. When we went to the trial hearing and both parties told the judge the settlement agreement. As part of the agreement their lawyer wanted to keep an open pretrial hearing for damages for after we moved out just in case there was damaged the house. Their lawyer stated that they wouldn’t proceed with the pretrial for damages if the house was in good condition and would drop it. We agreed because we kept the house in good condition and didn’t think there would be any issues.


Now I have a pretrial hearing scheduled.

On the old case to enforce your... settlement? Consent judgment? On a new case?

This pretrial hearing was scheduled as part of the original lawsuit as mentioned above. We were only going to have a pretrial for damages if they found that the home was damaged during the inspection. I believe it was just a continued part of the original eviction complaint.


When we moved into the property the flooring was already heavily damaged and scraped up.

Did you complete a move-in checklist? Did you take pictures at any time?

We did complete a move-in checklist. The landlord gave us one to complete, which we did. However she was going to come back to pick up the checklist and have me sign the lease, but she never came back or called about it. We did not take any pictures of the property when we moved in.


Also, the plumbing work was another preexisting issue already there when we moved in. The landlord had plumbers come over to the property 8-9 times to work on a leaky pipe.

Describe the plumbing issue for us. Most plumbing issues would not be a tenant's fault.

The downstairs tenant called the landlord to complain about water leaking when we took showers in our unit. Visit #1: The landlord had a plumber come out to look at the problem, he told us we needed to install shower splash guard so water wouldn’t spill outside and drip downstairs. We installed them. However the downstairs tenant said water was still leaking. Visit #2: Another plumber came out and did some work on the shower. They installed a complete shower door; it was originally a plastic shower curtain. The downstairs tenant told the landlord that water was still leaking. Visit #3: Another plumber came and resealed the shower pan thinking that water was leaking inside the shower behind the shower pan. However water was still leaking after they resealed the shower pan. Visit #4: A plumber came out and resealed the entire bathroom floor with hot tar and installed new tile. However water was still leaking downstairs. We had plumbers come to the house a few other time and they did some work on the downstairs unit, but they never fixed the problem before we agreed to leave.


I NEVER SIGNED THE LEASE.

You previously told us, "I signed a 1 year lease and have been renting the property since February 23, 2012". What is it that you signed, if not a lease?

Sorry for the confusion, there was a 1 year lease agreement signed with the landlord. However I moved to the property about a month after the other two roommates moved in. Both roommates signed the lease with the landlord. The landlord knew I was moving in a few weeks later and was going to have me sign the lease once I got there. However once I moved in she never came over to have me sign the lease. So there is a lease, but I personally never signed it.


Also, the landlord left us with a worksheet to complete which showed the condition of the house prior to move in. We completed it; however she was going to pick it up when she came over to have me sign the lease. But she never did. So we have a completed worksheet showing that mostly everything in the house was dirty or needs repair.

Your roommates moved in separately - they didn't complete a checklist?

My roommates moved in 3-4 weeks prior to me moving in. The landlord gave them a checklist the day they moved in and signed the lease. They completed and signed the checklist. However the landlord told my roommates that she would pick up the checklist when she came over to have me sign the lease. But she never came over. So we have a completed checklist that was signed by my two roommates. The checklist states that the flooring is severely damaged and needs repair.