What would you do in this situation? It's critical, PLEASE help.

[COCUE]

Originally Posted by cBach

Try to negotiate what is owed down. You may be able to get the amount owed down to $2000. Simply pay it and move on. Attorney's fees will be much higher than that.

Or simply work out a payment plan.

I will echo this. Try to negotiate the amount down as well as agree on a payment plan even for add low as you can manage on a monthly basis and they would agree to. Never sued anyone in my life but i imagine attorney fees can end up really exorbitant. Going forward, use this as a teaching moment, if you see your utility bill higher than it should be, then get on it ASAP and please don't expect that 000s of $ will just be wiped clean Asher you move away. If you are a tenant, then get on your landlord immediately and not let it go because this is ultimately going to be on your credit not theirs.


Finally, can you please clarify, how exactly anyone can take your children away just because you owe the CoA $4k or even if you've had your water turned off, I'm having trouble seeing the connection. If debtors got their children taken away, then who would have children? Perhaps I am really missing something here.

[clarksvillemom]

Austin Tenants Council is best bet, not to completely avoid paying but to work out a payment plan for some lesser amount

[clarksvillemom]

if a $4000 water bill is enough to drive your fiance away and end your family, you've got other problems. Tell him to help out and stop bitching.

[Austin97]

Originally Posted by COCUE

I will echo this. Try to negotiate the amount down as well as agree on a payment plan even for add low as you can manage on a monthly basis and they would agree to. Never sued anyone in my life but i imagine attorney fees can end up really exorbitant. Going forward, use this as a teaching moment, if you see your utility bill higher than it should be, then get on it ASAP and please don't expect that 000s of $ will just be wiped clean Asher you move away. If you are a tenant, then get on your landlord immediately and not let it go because this is ultimately going to be on your credit not theirs.


Finally, can you please clarify, how exactly anyone can take your children away just because you owe the CoA $4k or even if you've had your water turned off, I'm having trouble seeing the connection. If debtors got their children taken away, then who would have children? Perhaps I am really missing something here.

I think he was joking about the part regarding his wife leaving etc..

[austin-steve]

Originally Posted by dawhite9

...the gusher (it was more than a leak) extended into multiple billing cycles. This continued for so long for several reasons:

It's your responsibility to look at your bill and immediately take action in the event of high usage.
1) Go look around your yard for an obvious leak, which it sounds like you would have discovered immeditealy with a thorough look.
2) If no leak found, turn off everything in the home and go look at your meter. If it's spinning, water is traveling through.
3) Report the results of #1 and/or #2 via written report/notification to your landlord. Also call COA for a free leak check to confirm.

I own rentals and manage houses as well. I'm on the receiving end of this exact sort of complaint every year. When addressed immediately, we find the leak, provide documentation to the tenant, and tenant takes it from there. Landlord has no exposure/responsibility whatsoever for financial consequences.

...How would you save your family from dissolving over a water bill?

With love.

Originally Posted by Austin97

...
The landlord is ultimately responsible since your lease contract most likely says he has to keep things in good repair.
edit:
we also dealt with our issue in a timely manner. Within a month of the issue happening. You letting it drag on just makes it harder and harder to get it resolved.

Landlords can only repair things that are known/reported to them. Once landlord is made aware of a problem, a duty exists to take action. But not before. The occupant has the responsibility of noticing and reporting problems. A tenant who allows a leak to continue undiscovered and unreported to the landlord is responsible for the consequences, sadly sometimes, but that's how it works. A lease agreement in Texas contains no language conveying any sort of protection or "insurance" against high bills.

It's important in these discussions to remember that a lease gives the tenant complete "possession" of the dwelling unit. It's like owning in many respects, but is instead the purchasing of a "right of possession" for a given period of time. If you rented a car and it burned more gas than you thought it should have, you don't get to ask the rental car company to help pay for that. Same with utilities. That's between the occupant and the utility company.

[DCtoTejas]

Maybe I missed something in the first post, but couldn't you get the utilities in the fiance's name at the new place? Then you could work out a payment plan or simply tell the city to pound sand your're not paying it if you don't care about credit impact. It sounds like this is all being put on you by your partner; that's an issue in itself.