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It's a problem and I empathize. Landlords are running a business and it's a red flag to them generally when a person has an eviction filed against them, regardless of how it turns out. As a private landlord for many years I never even asked the question and many private landlords don't (I've lived in dozens of rentals and have never once been asked nor have been subjected to any sort of background check) but corporations/property management companies are positively anal about it (not that it guarantees them good tenants, either!). Don't know how to explain it any better!
The paper I received has information on how to receive a copy of the report. The website for the court where this all occurred correctly shows me as winning the case. Isn't that exactly what they would have seen? And yes, the application only asked if I had been evicted, not if it had been filed.
Get a copy of the report.
Despite many people's belief, if you won your case and the JUDGE did not grant the landlord's request to have you evicted, you were NOT evicted! For some reason many people foregt that the filing for eviction is nothing but a landlord's claim. It is the Judge who after hearing the evidence, decides if your actions meet the requirment for an eviction and it is the Judge and only the Judge who grants the eviction. Until that happens, its just some smucky landlord huffing and puffing. In the end, the Judge said NO to an eviction and thus You Were Not Evicted. Sue the old landlord if they caused the problem.
Now, there is also the possibility that the eviction filing showed as an eviction filing and the new landlord misunderstood the information. Once you get a copy of the information, you can come back and let us know what it said so we can direct you to the proper way to deal with it.
You don't have to be a bad client but a LL really has very few things to go on. Especially a private LL.
When I pull a background check it simply tells me if there was a eviction filed or actually ordered and where. It may have a case number. I would have to call and get the records pulled and find out the ruling and circumstances of the case. It won't say case number 123556-a PacificLife78 vs Bad LL. Ruling for plaintiff because LL was a bad man who deserved everything he got.
Anything else like felony etc may give me a code violation number and maybe a violation of the law/code.
As cruel as it sounds its much easier for me to just move on to another applicant. It's not because I don't want to rent to you. I don't want to rent to a person who has been dragged in court especially on a eviction. Or is litigious. And I don't feel like spending hours trying to play Sherlock Holmes either. California is so tenant friendly that even if the tenant is in the wrong sometimes they win. So it's easier to just avoid it altogether and rent with someone who has a clean record.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Everdeen
Landlords - correct me if I'm wrong. I don't think that being the defendant in an unjustly filed eviction in which the defendant won, is a protected class for rental purposes.
Although it's not fair (in your case), I'm pretty sure that unless you belong to a protected class (race, disability, gender, etc) and are being refused for being a member of that class, a landlord can refuse to rent to you.
The only protected things are race religion disability sexual orientation, children gender etc. Being a plaintiff or defendant in a eviction case is not protected
You can decline a application simply because it was incomplete.
The only protected things are race religion disability sexual orientation, children gender etc. Being a plaintiff or defendant in a eviction case is not protected
"Sexual orientation" is actually only a protected class in some states.
It is possible the landlord you were applying to just misread the report or didn't read any further than the word eviction.
When I pull the public records, on a person who has an eviction hearing on their record, the word "EVICTION" is big and obvious. I have to actually read all the legalese to see what the outcome was of the hearing. The landlord may not have looked any further than the word EVICTION and didn't see that you won.
I'm not excusing that behavior, just saying it could have been a mistake. Possibly worth a phone call or visit to their office to discuss what the circumstances were and to clarify that you won your case.
The fact that an eviction was filed against you tells me that you had a dispute with your prior landlord.
As a landlord, I'm not looking for tenants that get in disputes with the landlord.
I realize that the dispute COULD be totally one-sided and that you COULD be the perfect tenant.
But the fact you won the case does not tell me a whole lot. I avoid red flags.
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