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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Location
    Los Angeles
    Posts
    1

    Default Roommate Says Landlord Will Sue Me, But I'm Not On The Lease

    I moved into a home with a girl back in February. She had found the house, filled out all the paperwork and paid the entire deposit herself (well her boss at the time did). When I decided to move in I wrote her boss a check for half of the deposit and moved in. We put the gas bill in my name, as I later found out she owed them over a hundred dollars and couldn't put it in her name. Every month I would write a check directly to the landlord for my portion of the rent. In the seven months that I lived with this roommate she lost her job 3 times and at one time was out of work for at least 2 months. Needless to say utilities would get turned off and sometimes the checks I gave her for things would take over a month to clear, due to her not having money to send her portion in.

    The final straw was seeing the rent envelope in the mailbox with only my portion of the rent. Fearing that at any moment there would be an eviction notice on the door I decided to move out. There were other issues but those are somewhat minor.

    I decided to move out and gave her 30 days notice, although I would be physically moving out ASAP. I told her to use the money I gave her as a deposit for my last months rent and that she could keep my $300 + stove instead of money for the last month of utilities and that I would keep the gas on for the next month as well (I had been paying it 100% for over 5 months anyways).

    She then proceeded to tell me that the landlord was not above taking me to court and that I am on the rental agreement. I never filled out a rental application, never gave them my work info, social security info and never signed a lease agreement.

    This all happened back in September and I just received an email from the old roommate basically saying that I have left her with rent and that the landlord has copies of my checks and that is thinking of taking legal action.

    Not sure if he really can or if it is all on her.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    Behind a Desk
    Posts
    98,846

    Default Roommate Problem

    Have you contacted the landlord to try to find out what is going on? Perhaps this girl forged your name on the lease agreement.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Nov 2005
    Posts
    310

    Default

    It sounds like a bluff to me. If you didn't sign the lease, you have no liability to the landlord. I wouldn't put it passed the landlord to try and hold you liable since he/she accepted at least part of the rent from you. In his/her shoes, you might try it too. And if you had no agreement regarding sharing this rental with the roommate as to the method of terminating your agreement, I don't see any liability to the roommate. If the landlord has a problem with you moving out, you will likely hear from the landlord personally. But that doesn't mean that the landlord is right, only that the former roommate is accurate about the landlord has said to her.

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