need help landlord say i owe money when i don't (documentation, house)
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Its still unclear if the lease stated No Pets. In rereading, he says hes in violation of the lease because of the cats. Until the landlord tells the OP exactly what the charge is for, I dont know what else he can do other than just plan on leaving. Im still thinking there is something missing from his story.
ok housing sent a letter to make sure i'm in good standing with the landlord if not then I can't relocate he sent the letter back saying I owe him money which is a 1095 dollars in which I don't I have asked were do I owe this money he has yet to show me are housing were this money is owed so I can't move
I dont know much about Housing, but I find it difficult to believe they are holding your feet to the fire over a charge from the landlord, if he's not giving them a valid reason for it.
Okay, then I can only conclude that it is obvious that your LL knows how to jack around just enough to beat the system. My guess is that he is mad for some reason that you don't want to stay and pay his rent increase so he knew that sending that letter to housing was going to put a huge glitch in it for you.
I don't know that much about sec 8 so bear with me. 1) are you confirming that you are on sec 8 voucher program? 2) If you are on sec 8, how much of an increase is it going to be out of your pocket with his rent increase? I mean other than what sec 8 pays.
And, I don't understand why housing won't help or assist you in this situation. 3) What exactly did they tell you when you asked them for help?
Anyone else here familiar enough with sec 8 to assist the OP in what the next step would be to get help for this situation if sec 8 counselor won't help? Would OP go to a HUD representative or are they one in the same? I can't imagine that the OP would be forced to hire an attorney if they have no money to do so. There has got to be some advocate that can help OP. Isn't that what housing counselors are meant to do?
ok to answer your question yes i'm on section 8 and I pay 30% of my income plus what ever is over my rent the was raised from 995.00 to 1562.00 out of that I have to pay 662.00 which is more then what my pay is for right now i'm only working part time and 2 yes I've try to get from them but not much they can for they do not get in the middle of landlord/tenant things and that I need to get legal advice
I dont know much about Housing, but I find it difficult to believe they are holding your feet to the fire over a charge from the landlord, if he's not giving them a valid reason for it.
It's pretty much standard practice that landlords won't rent to an applicant if some other landlord claims they owe money. It's much easier to find a place to rent if you owe credit card debt to a collection agency than if you owe a landlord. Even if you don't actually owe a landlord - if a landlord claims you owe money but the landlord's claim will not hold up in court - no landlord is going to bother trying to sort out who is right, so they simply won't rent to you.
You can owe credit card debt or student loan debt or child support and find a place to rent, but owing a landlord is a total dealbreaker.
Your current landlord will never be your most beneficial reference - prospective landlords discount current landlord references because current landlords have an incentive to falsely provide positive references in order to get rid of a bad tenant - but your current landlord can easily be your most harmful reference.
Ok, OP. You need to go in and talk to your Section 8 rep. Tell them what you have said here, that you object to the landlord's statement that you owe money. You have paid all your rent, and don't know where he is coming up with $1095 due, and that the first you heard anything about it was right after you gave notice. You have asked for a written account of WHY this money is due, and he has not provided it. Section 8 should then contact the landlord and ask him why you owe this money. If you don't officially object, they will just take the landlord's word for it.
The Section 8 reps aren't all that helpful in general. They won't take sides, they won't give advice most of the time, they won't help a landlord collect, or a tenant get their deposit back. But one thing they typically will do is act as a go between to coordinate move in/move out details. That is what this ultimately is. So they should help, but only if you ask for it. In person is best.
If your lease doesn't specifically state a penalty for getting a pet without permission or pet rent that should be due if a pet is present, then $1095 seems like an oddly specific amount, considering you aren't moved out yet for the landlord to see what the damage is. So I'm guessing it isn't that. The landlord could evict for the presence of an unauthorized pet, but they can't retroactively make up a fine amount. They would have to send a 3 day notice to remedy by getting rid of the cat, and state in that letter what the monetary cost is if the tenant wants to keep the pet. So then the tenant would have 3 days to pay or get rid of the cat. The OP makes no mention of any of that happening.
OP, without verification from your landlord on what this money is for, nothing can really be done. See if your rep can help you get that. That's all anyone can really help you with for now. If you find out what it is for, check back in with us.
MY GUESS is that the landlord didn't remember when the lease was up when he made that statement. That is probably the lease break penalty, and he thought you were breaking the lease. Landlords who have a lot of properties don't necessarily remember when each one expires. He probably either didn't understand that you were giving notice for the end of your lease, or else messed up and forgot to actually check when your lease ended.
Ok, OP. You need to go in and talk to your Section 8 rep. Tell them what you have said here, that you object to the landlord's statement that you owe money. You have paid all your rent, and don't know where he is coming up with $1095 due, and that the first you heard anything about it was right after you gave notice. You have asked for a written account of WHY this money is due, and he has not provided it. Section 8 should then contact the landlord and ask him why you owe this money. If you don't officially object, they will just take the landlord's word for it.
The Section 8 reps aren't all that helpful in general. They won't take sides, they won't give advice most of the time, they won't help a landlord collect, or a tenant get their deposit back. But one thing they typically will do is act as a go between to coordinate move in/move out details. That is what this ultimately is. So they should help, but only if you ask for it. In person is best.
If your lease doesn't specifically state a penalty for getting a pet without permission or pet rent that should be due if a pet is present, then $1095 seems like an oddly specific amount, considering you aren't moved out yet for the landlord to see what the damage is. So I'm guessing it isn't that. The landlord could evict for the presence of an unauthorized pet, but they can't retroactively make up a fine amount. They would have to send a 3 day notice to remedy by getting rid of the cat, and state in that letter what the monetary cost is if the tenant wants to keep the pet. So then the tenant would have 3 days to pay or get rid of the cat. The OP makes no mention of any of that happening.
OP, without verification from your landlord on what this money is for, nothing can really be done. See if your rep can help you get that. That's all anyone can really help you with for now. If you find out what it is for, check back in with us.
MY GUESS is that the landlord didn't remember when the lease was up when he made that statement. That is probably the lease break penalty, and he thought you were breaking the lease. Landlords who have a lot of properties don't necessarily remember when each one expires. He probably either didn't understand that you were giving notice for the end of your lease, or else messed up and forgot to actually check when your lease ended.
thank you very much and I have done all that you have said to do already he still to this day haven't giving anything I just called my case worker still nothing and no he never gave me anything about me having pet cats this just come up only after I sent him a letter about this me owing him money and to note I have had my cats for 7yrs so if that was a problem why now say anything why not years ago and no he only has this one property and he know when my lease was up
??? ??? ??? ??? How do you THINK landlords stop their tenants from relocating?
??? ??? ??? ???
It sounds like the OP is using some sort of housing program like Section 8. If the landlord is claiming the OP owes $, then the OP might not be able to continue using the program. I think that is why the OP says the landlord is preventing the relocation.
OP--You had cats without permission. Verbal permission doesn't count. The landlord is charging you for pet damage. You may not think there is damage, but there maybe an odor you have learned to live with. Cats, and I do love cats, are notoriously sneaky and tricky about damage--ESPECIALLY wood floors.
It sounds like the OP is using some sort of housing program like Section 8. If the landlord is claiming the OP owes $, then the OP might not be able to continue using the program. I think that is why the OP says the landlord is preventing the relocation.
OP--You had cats without permission. Verbal permission doesn't count. The landlord is charging you for pet damage. You may not think there is damage, but there maybe an odor you have learned to live with. Cats, and I do love cats, are notoriously sneaky and tricky about damage--ESPECIALLY wood floors.
The OP hasn't moved out yet. So there is no way the landlord could just eyeball an occupied house and come up with a number that specific about what the damages are going to cost to repair.
thank you very much and I have done all that you have said to do already he still to this day haven't giving anything I just called my case worker still nothing and no he never gave me anything about me having pet cats this just come up only after I sent him a letter about this me owing him money and to note I have had my cats for 7yrs so if that was a problem why now say anything why not years ago and no he only has this one property and he know when my lease was up
Below is a contact number for HUD in TX where you can try calling for help/assistance. If they can't help you after you explain your situation then ask them where you can call for help ASAP. Let them know that you have tried calling your Housing representative and they are not helping you.
Just tell them everything you told us and because he is not cooperating and providing the information you need and that he is required to provide that you are unable to move to a new place that you can afford.
And if the above doesn't work, you can try the one below that is in your area:
Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (serving low income persons in southwest Texas) 1-888-988-9996
Lone Star Legal Aid (serving low income persons in southern and eastern Texas) 1-800-733-8394
You say you paid all of your rent on time and paid every month. Go to your Section 8 case worker and take all of your receipts to show that you paid every month AND PAID ON TIME so you do not owe several years worth of late fees.
I think maybe you snuck those cats in without permission and owe pet fees and maybe pet rent retroactively.
If you have proof that all rent was paid, Section 8 should not hold up your grant.
However, a lousy landlord reference that you snuck in unauthorized cats will make it difficult to find a new place to rent.
I don't think that anyone here can help you because of garbled and withheld information. Take all your paperwork to your case worker and see if they can get it straightened out.
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