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This is my last month in this house. I already gave my 60 day notice, and mailed July's rent to the landlord. He's saying he never got it, but I don't believe him, because he always gets it, and he said so himself. There has never been a problem before. Now he says he's going to evict me.
I plan to move in 12 days on the 18th, so I tried to tell him that he would be wasting his money, since I would be out of here anyway. My problem is that in this county, you can't file a response unless you deposit the rent money into the court, which of course, I don't have since I sent it to him.
He hasn't given me a 3-day notice yet, but I assume he will do that today. Is there any way he can get me out of here in fewer than 12 days? Do papers have to be served in person, or can the sheriff just tape them to the door?
What if the eviction is served before the 18th and I don't leave? What can he do?
I've never been evicted, so I am really upset by this. I really just think this horrible slumlord jerk is trying to get me out early. I hear he plans to move a family member in.
When did you mail the check? Maybe mail is late due to the recent holiday.
You should re-write the check and hand deliver it to the landlord if you get a 3 day notice, and cancel the check that was lost in the mail. First confirm with your bank to see if he cashed the 1st check.
You do NOT, under any circumstances, want your landlord to file eviction with the court. Even if you move out before the court date, and even if he drops the case. Just him filing it goes into public record against you. Most future landlord will immediately deny you as soon as they see that on public record. They don't care if the mailman lost the check, or whether the case was dropped.
Seriously, you won't be able to un-do this once he files with the court. It will hurt you many years into the future. It might put you into horrible neighborhoods because you won't be able to rent in nice places because they automatically turn you down just because of the eviction filing.
I can believe he never got it. We're in Ocala. My tenant mailed me a check one month for rent on the 2nd (due on the 3rd). It never showed up until the 12th. My rental is 15 miles from me, yet his payment has to go to Jacksonville to be processed and then sent back to Ocala. No idea where it was floating around those 10 days.
Do you pay by check? If you're sure he got it, check your checking account to see if it cleared. If you're one that insists on money orders, have the issuer check to see if it's been cashed.
He can't evict you in 18 days, but he can start an eviction. First thing, check to see if your payment has cleared. If not, you can stop payment on a check or money order and reissue it to him.
It's 4th of July weekend. Mail will routinely be delayed by about a week. It's possible that your landlord has not received your rent.
You can check with your bank to see if the check has been cashed. If not, put a stop payment on it and go and hand your landlord a replacement check.
The landlord is very unlikely to let you sit there for 18 days with the rent unpaid. You are risking having an eviction filed against you. Even if you can get out before the eviction is finalized, the landlord can get a judgement against you for the unpaid rent. That judgement won't be quite as bad as an eviction on your record, but it will definitely come up on your credit report and landlords are extremely reluctant to accept a new tenant that left the old place owing money to their landlord.
Not to mention, you aren't going to get a good landlord reference out of it.
Incidentally, I've heard from landlords in Florida that evictions in Florida are swift.
I can believe he never got it. We're in Ocala. My tenant mailed me a check one month for rent on the 2nd (due on the 3rd). It never showed up until the 12th. My rental is 15 miles from me, yet his payment has to go to Jacksonville to be processed and then sent back to Ocala. No idea where it was floating around those 10 days.
Do you pay by check? If you're sure he got it, check your checking account to see if it cleared. If you're one that insists on money orders, have the issuer check to see if it's been cashed.
He can't evict you in 18 days, but he can start an eviction. First thing, check to see if your payment has cleared. If not, you can stop payment on a check or money order and reissue it to him.
He doesn't accept checks, so it was actually two money orders. I talked to him on the first, and he told me he hadn't received it, but he gave it until after the holiday. He checked today (so he says) and it still isn't there.
It will cost me $60 to trace the money orders, and it takes 6-8 weeks. I tried to tell him this, and to tell him that I'm moving on the 18th, but he doesn't seem to care. He says he has to "protect his property," whatever that means, since he admits I've been a good tenant. He's just being vindictive because of my turning him in to code enforcement months ago.
I have no intention of screwing him out of his money, but if he files eviction, I don't know what to do to mitigate that. Even if I pay him, it will be there, and there won't be any way around it. I don't intend to move again any time soon, but you never know what will happen. I didn't plan to leave here in a year when I first moved in either.
Is there any way you know of to file an answer without depositing the rent money with the court? Will there even be a court date if I don't file an answer? I'm totally ignorant of these laws.
I can't wait to be rid of this man. He has been a nightmare!
ETA: I'm not worried about using him as a reference, because he has already said horrible things about me and kept me from getting one place. I already have a new place, and I won't be moving again anytime soon if I can help it.
Keep your receipts and go ahead and trace them. It's the only way to stave off your eviction and not have it damage your credit plus ability to rent in the future. Plus why pay it twice?
Keep your receipts and go ahead and trace them. It's the only way to stave off your eviction and not have it damage your credit plus ability to rent in the future. Plus why pay it twice?
Honestly, I just don't have a spare $60 to trace them right now. I will once I move, and I fully intend to do so and pay him his rent, however long it takes. My fear is that he will get the money orders, cash them, and keep the money while still evicting me. I can't stop the eviction in time, because I can't deposit money with the court to file an answer. They just changed the FL eviction laws to make it easier to get people out, but it still takes at least 2 weeks once eviction is filed, so I don't think I'm in danger of being pitched out into the streets.
I called Three Rivers legal to ask them if there is any way to file an answer to at least slow it down some, but no reply yet.
Like I asked him, "Why would I do this to myself right before I move?" It makes no sense, right?
Honestly, I just don't have a spare $60 to trace them right now. I will once I move, and I fully intend to do so and pay him his rent, however long it takes. My fear is that he will get the money orders, cash them, and keep the money while still evicting me. I can't stop the eviction in time, because I can't deposit money with the court to file an answer. They just changed the FL eviction laws to make it easier to get people out, but it still takes at least 2 weeks once eviction is filed, so I don't think I'm in danger of being pitched out into the streets.
I called Three Rivers legal to ask them if there is any way to file an answer to at least slow it down some, but no reply yet.
Like I asked him, "Why would I do this to myself right before I move?" It makes no sense, right?
I don't understand this part, if you already paid it, why would you need time to pay it? And to file a response, just include the receipts from the money orders showing it's fully paid and you are vacating as agreed. Then as soon as you can, trace it. Let's hope he did cash it, then he's screwed.
I don't understand this part, if you already paid it, why would you need time to pay it? And to file a response, just include the receipts from the money orders showing it's fully paid and you are vacating as agreed. Then as soon as you can, trace it. Let's hope he did cash it, then he's screwed.
The "however long it takes" means however long it takes to get a refund once they trace the money orders. Once I file the trace, there is a stop-payment put on them, so he can't cash them if he hasn't already. Money orders are hard, because the only way to prove he cashed them is to have them traced, which takes a long time.
The problem is that the court won't allow you to file an answer with just the money order receipts, as far as I know. The money order receipts don't have a payee on them, so there is no way to prove they were sent to him, other than to present the other receipts from months past as evidence of a pattern. They demand that you deposit the rent amount with the court to contest the eviction, which I don't have.
If Three Rivers calls me back, they can help me once the eviction is filed, so maybe they have a way of filing the answer without depositing the money. A realtor friend told me not to worry, that even under the new laws, 2 weeks is the least amount of time it takes to get someone out, and that is in extreme circumstances where the tenant is a threat to health or safety of the property or other tenants. She also said Alachua Co. courts are always bogged down with July evictions, because most of the rents run from Aug. 1 to July 31. I just don't want to be tossed out in the street before I have a chance to move on my own.
Thanks, everyone, for your help. I can't do anything now but wait and see what he does.
This is my last month in this house. I already gave my 60 day notice, and mailed July's rent to the landlord. He's saying he never got it, but I don't believe him, because he always gets it, and he said so himself. There has never been a problem before. Now he says he's going to evict me.
First step is finding out what happened with the check or money order (really, really hope you didn't mail cash) and cancel and re-issue if necessary.
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I plan to move in 12 days on the 18th, so I tried to tell him that he would be wasting his money, since I would be out of here anyway.
He hasn't given me a 3-day notice yet, but I assume he will do that today. Is there any way he can get me out of here in fewer than 12 days?
Well first, even if he issues the 3 day notice tomorrow, he wouldn't even be able to file the claim until Monday, the 13th, and then he would have to serve you. Even if he managed to serve you the same day he filed (extremely difficult but not impossible) your answer wouldn't be due until Monday, the 20th. Even if a default was issued it is unlikely that the eviction could be enforced until the following week.
Again, those are best case scenarios for him. Reasonably speaking it is going to take a day or two to line up the process server and actually have them out there. Since you'll have moved out by then, they'll have to make at least two attempts minimum to personally serve you before they can post the notice on the property, and then they must mail a copy of the summons to the property. You have 5 days from the dating of posting or mailing (whichever is later) before your answer is due.
If you mount a solid defense and know how to play the legal game, it's not impossible to drag the case out for a couple months.
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My problem is that in this county, you can't file a response unless you deposit the rent money into the court, which of course, I don't have since I sent it to him.
That only applies if there is no dispute as to the rent being unpaid. If you allege that it has been paid and he alleges it hasn't (provided you have some form of proof as to your claim) that is an issue that court must decide at trial. You can also file a motion to determine the rent due (also could be useful in this case) which would require its own hearing and then with time being afforded to you to produce whatever money the court might decide you owe.
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I've never been evicted, so I am really upset by this. I really just think this horrible slumlord jerk is trying to get me out early.
You have enough leverage to settle this on terms favorable to you.
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