Being sued by a landlord in Topeka KS. Help! Possible fraud and lots of questionable behavior (renter, lawyer) - Kansas - City-Data Forum

dixiepixie91 · 07-06-2014, 09:44 PM

My husband and I rented a property in Topeka Kansas from a married couple who said they owned the house they were offering. It was our first rental so we weren't familiar with Kansas Landlord Tenant laws. The landlords demanded cash only transactions and charged us a 1600.00 deposit (800.00 property deposit and 800.00 deposit for 2 dogs) We now know that the over charged us on the deposit.

We paid 800.00 a month for 16 months and then fullfilled a 60 day notice that we were moving out of the property. We returned the keys on Feb. 3rd and they moved a new tenant in on Feb. 10th. They attempted to collect double rent but we found out the new tenants were in the house and only paid pro-rated rent up to Feb. 9th. We requested to do a final walk through with them and were told we were not allowed to do so.

After that we didn't hear from them until a month after we moved out at which time the wife called and screamed at me over the phone that we "destroyed" their house and that we owed them MORE than the deposit. We never received anything in writing via mail or personal delivery, we never saw them again.
My husband and i were willing to let the deposit go and call it all an expensive learning experience. Then on May 29th I was served papers at work that they were suing us in small claims court for over 2000.00 in "Late fees" "Liability fees" "Move out fees" and "damage to property". Once again we still did not and have not seen an itemized list of deductions which is required by law.

We did not deep clean the house on move out but it wasn't in bad condition, normal wear and tear. The carpets were also 5+ years old and were faded/stained when we moved in.

The properties that they rent for cash only are not under their names- their own house isn't under their name.
The properties are listed to her daughter as the owner and they list her address back to a rental of theirs that she doesn't live in! The wife is on disability and refuses to work yet they take 4-5 foster children from the state who they charge extra for due to "behavior". She has stated the foster kids pay for her manicures and cruises.
I want opinions on this whole shenanigan, any points of view will be welcomed as we go to court friday and i think we have a fairly solid case but i would like to see any angle that they may rebuttal with.

Okey Dokie · 07-06-2014, 10:08 PM

Did you have a lease? How many times were you late with the rent? Did you get dated receipts when you paid? What does your lease and/or rental agreement say about late fees? Did you take pictures before you moved out?

dixiepixie91 · 07-06-2014, 10:30 PM

Yes we signed a lease which listed late fees. Any time that we knew we would pay rent after the first we made arrangements with the landlord first and they never requested a late fee. We received hand written receipts but they did luckily have dates and amounts paid

We have pictures from when we moved out and the current tenant offered to let us take current pictures of the house as it sits now.

karen_in_nh_2012 · 07-07-2014, 02:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dixiepixie91

Yes we signed a lease which listed late fees. Any time that we knew we would pay rent after the first we made arrangements with the landlord first and they never requested a late fee. We received hand written receipts but they did luckily have dates and amounts paid

We have pictures from when we moved out and the current tenant offered to let us take current pictures of the house as it sits now.

Even if they didn't "request" late fees, if it's in the lease, they may very well be able to charge them. How late were you, how many times, and what does the lease say?

They sound nuts, but unfortunately they may be able to collect some money according to the terms of the lease if you were late several times.

(BTW, I'm also confused by your OP when you say you "fulfilled the 60-day notice requirement" but then still had to pay rent after you moved out on February 3rd? Something is off ...)

Versatile · 07-07-2014, 08:13 AM

Search for Ks renter rights. Ks is very much slanted to protect the renter.

superrupe · 07-07-2014, 03:59 PM

I don't know if I can post this or not:

http://www.kshousingcorp.org/SharedF...512&fileid=371

lizardspock · 07-07-2014, 07:18 PM

If they didn't do a pre-move in inspection report AND provide an itemized list of deductions for the repairs on move out, there is absolutely nothing they can do to you. This is likely a scare tactic. I would talk to a lawyer if you haven't already. I think this will go away.

karen_in_nh_2012 · 07-07-2014, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lizardspock

If they didn't do a pre-move in inspection report AND provide an itemized list of deductions for the repairs on move out, there is absolutely nothing they can do to you. This is likely a scare tactic. I would talk to a lawyer if you haven't already. I think this will go away.

I agree that it's mostly a scare tactic, but if the OP paid rent late (sounds like it happened more than once) and there are penalties for that in the lease (sounds like that is the case), I would think the OP could be charged those fees (which can really add up -- again, depends on what's in the lease, which the OP hasn't said).

lizardspock · 07-08-2014, 12:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by karen_in_nh_2012

I agree that it's mostly a scare tactic, but if the OP paid rent late (sounds like it happened more than once) and there are penalties for that in the lease (sounds like that is the case), I would think the OP could be charged those fees (which can really add up -- again, depends on what's in the lease, which the OP hasn't said).

That is true. That's another good reason to spend a couple hundred to have a lawyer look at everything. They can tell the OP if the "late fee" claim holds water.

Okey Dokie · 07-08-2014, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lizardspock

That is true. That's another good reason to spend a couple hundred to have a lawyer look at everything. They can tell the OP if the "late fee" claim holds water.

I don't know if the OP needs a lawyer to tell her this.

Let's say lease calls for $20 late fee any time rent is received after the 5th. If OP paid on January 8, Fenruary 2, March 10, April 6th and may 12, that's $80 in late fees. OP says they have dated receipts.