If signed a leased and never move in or pay, will it hurt your credit? (Tempe: campus, property)

[johnp292]

Originally Posted by magnum0417

NOW: I can also tell you how you can "go into hiding" to make it as frustrating as possible. Notify associates and family about your situation and ask them not to divulge your whereabouts #1.
#2) Get a PO Box with someone elses name to get your mail at.
$3) Buy a prepaid cell at someplace like Walmart. I can trace people's cells who are under a contract but I still cannot verify those who buy it prepaid without the merchant asking for ID.
$4) DO NOT apply for any credit. Your whereabouts will then show up as an inquiry on your credit report making it easy for someone to locate you.
#5) On your prepaid cell, DO NOT put your voice on the voicemail. Keep the automated message so no one can verify whose phone it is. Also, do not activate your voicemail so no one can leave messages either.

What good is all this going to do? She'll still get sued and when she doesn't respond to the notices the landlord will get a default judgment, which will then show up on her credit reports. They'll just mail everything to her last known address.

[CodyW]

Originally Posted by Laurenrae134

I can't find legal advice that doesn't cost a fortune, I need names of organizations that can help me if possible.

Legal advice:

Try NAU. When I was up there, they were SUPPOSED to have a lawyer or someone on staff for legal advice for students. You're paying through it through your 23 fee. I never tried to use it, so I don't know if it's available or not, given ASNAU's track record of not following through on promises. Worth a shot though.

Update: Here ya go. http://nau.edu/Student-Orgs/ASNAU/St...ounsel-Office/

[Zippyman]

I'd start by notifying the landlord *in writing*, certified mail with return receipt requested, that you will not be moving in on "xx" date. Save the return receipt & a copy of the letter. If the letter is refused, save it, unopened. The landlord has a duty to mitigate the damage, no matter what the lease says - if you were scheduled to move in on the first of next month & notified them today, they have a couple of weeks to find another tenant. The longer you delay doing so, the bigger the potential for damages.

Notifying them over the phone or in person doesnt count.

If they can find a tenant for the move-in date you reserved, you're off the hook. But they have to be notified in writing & you need proof of that.

At least do your part to minimize the damage & you'll have a better chance of making it through this unscathed.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by CodyW

Legal advice:

Try NAU. When I was up there, they were SUPPOSED to have a lawyer or someone on staff for legal advice for students. You're paying through it through your 23 fee. I never tried to use it, so I don't know if it's available or not, given ASNAU's track record of not following through on promises. Worth a shot though.

Update: Here ya go. Student Legal Counsel Office - ASNAU - Northern Arizona University

This, and

Originally Posted by Zippyman

I'd start by notifying the landlord *in writing*, certified mail with return receipt requested, that you will not be moving in on "xx" date. Save the return receipt & a copy of the letter. If the letter is refused, save it, unopened. The landlord has a duty to mitigate the damage, no matter what the lease says - if you were scheduled to move in on the first of next month & notified them today, they have a couple of weeks to find another tenant. The longer you delay doing so, the bigger the potential for damages.

Notifying them over the phone or in person doesnt count.

If they can find a tenant for the move-in date you reserved, you're off the hook. But they have to be notified in writing & you need proof of that.

At least do your part to minimize the damage & you'll have a better chance of making it through this unscathed.

This. (perhaps the legal office at NAU will send/draft this letter for you.) Get busy.

[ji603]

Kind of a mess OP. draft that letter saying you won't be occupying the place in tempe. Mtell your mom, and ask for help before you make things worse. Read this, it's the AZ landlord tenant act. Note that the landlord is required to give you a copy of the lease...

http://www.azhousing.gov/azcms/uploa...0-12-31-12.pdf

[Noregrets11]

Running away from this, as Magnum's first few responses advise, is in poor judgement. I assume you are in the 18-20 range, so my advice is based on that assumption....please forgive me if I'm wrong.

You are at a crossroads between childhood and adulthood. You decided to be an adult when you signed a year long commitment to pay for your living arrangements. Life smacked you in the face with a health problem, but unfortunately, this doesn't release you from your obligations. Now, this is your chance to decide how you are going to face the hand life dealt to you: as an adult, or as a child.

It's only natural for your first response to be the familiar child-like reaction; but I would encourage you to dig deep and face this adult problem with adult solutions. Hopefully the letter writing advised above will be enough to release you from your obligation. If not, you may have to suck it up and live there for a year, but it's ONLY a year....and then it will be done and you will come out of this wiser and proud of yourself for the way it was handled. If you dodge town (like a child would) this little incident will haunt you for at least the next 7 years...it will NOT go away, and you won't be able to forget it.

Do yourself a favor and find a legal, adult solution. You will be thanking yourself for years to come!

And FWIW, my daily headaches went away after slowing down my consumption of meat. Maybe there's a different underlying reason for the headaches and the heat is just exacerbating them? A visit to a Naturopathic doctor could help you figure this out, if you haven't already tried that route.

Best of luck to you!

[crystalys]

1. YOU NEED A LAWYER AND LEGAL ADVICE IMMEDIATELY - YOUR COLLEGE IS A GOOD RESOURCE, CALL THEM FOR HELP

2. TELL YOUR PARENTS IMMEDIATELY - THEY MAY HAVE A GOOD LAWYER OR LEGAL PLAN AT THEIR WORK

3. WRITE A CERTIFIED RETURN RECEIPT LETTER (KEEP COPIES OF EVERYTHING FOR YOURSELF) TO THE APARTMENT MANAGER IMMEDIATELY REQUESTING A COPY OF THE LEASE THAT YOU ARE ENTITLED TO BY LAW - IF THEY CAN'T PROVIDE ONE THEN THERE IS NO LEASE - YOU DON'T OWE THEM ANYTHING. IF THEY TAKE YOU TO COURT AND PRODUCE THE LEASE THEN YOU HAVE YOUR COPIES PROVING YOU REQUESTED IT BUT THEY NEVER GAVE YOU A COPY.

4. PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT EVERYONE IS TELLING YOU - VERBAL ASSURANCES AND PROMISES MEAN NOTHING - UNLESS IT IS IN WRITING, DON'T BELIEVE IT.

I will stop yelling now. I realize you are upset but you don't have to yell on here either. You have been given great advice short of an actual lawyer chiming in....please keep us up to date and ask more questions if you need to.

I have 6 children who are about your age and older and when they do something that causes problems in their life, I only ask that they tell me as soon as possible because then it gives me time to help them solve it with the least amount of stress and urgency. I may get mad at what they did but I hate it even more when an honest mistake can ruin their credit for several years. Tell you parents, then open your mouth and take your medicine. It only tastes bad for a little while and then you can feel better. Good luck and congrats on your scholarship!

[Kris000]

I work in this industry and deal with leases and legal matters every day. A few things seem weird with this situation... First off, as stated by other people already, only the actual lease agreement matters. Saying that you were told something different is irrelevant, because it is hearsay and you have no way to prove it. The legally binding document you signed supersedes any sort of verbal agreement.

Second, it is not legal to refuse to give a copy of the lease to you. I would go back immediately and demand a copy.

Third, once you have a copy of the lease, there should be some sort of lease cancellation policy clearly stated in it. It might be a set penalty fee, or a percentage of your contract value (such as 40% of each remaining month's rent or something like that.) This will tell you exactly what you obligated yourself to.

Fourth, many companies such as the one I work for, do not hold you to the lease if there has not yet been an exchange of keys and move in money. Basically even if the lease was already signed, we let the person cancel for a nominal fee ($100) as long as they haven't actually moved in yet. I would look into this as well and see if the fact that you hadn't actually moved in yet makes a difference.

Fifth, it seems odd that you said they never ran a credit check or anything like that. Are you absolutely certain that you signed the full lease and not just an application form of some sort? The fact that they won't give you a copy of the lease also makes me wonder about this part...

Good luck.

[rgscpat]

Who was it who once said that "Oral agreements aren't worth the paper they're printed upon?"
This is a strange situation.

[S. Chris Webb]

OP, Is this your ad? I admit I read this thread pretty quickly, but didn't see the part where you mentioned room-mates. Did they sign the lease also?

EDIT: I think I might be understanding this now: this is student housing, where you apply and the landlord matches you up with other room-mates (for which you aren't responsible for their own individual lease)? Is this the application you submitted? If so, they are likely entitled to keep the $49 application fee, plus the $150 security deposit no matter what. As for having to find another room-mate to take your place, that will depend on what it said on your lease. As others have said earlier, they must give you a copy of the lease if it was written. Leases of one year or more are required to be written in AZ, but I see that this company offers 10 month leases. If you did not sign a written lease for a shorter than one year term, there may or may not be an enforceable lease in place. If you did SIGN a lease (NOT to be confused with the application) they MUST give you a copy. Ask them in writing for a copy. See whether you signed something that says you are responsible for finding another room-mate. Did you already pay for the first month rent as well?

I am not an attorney, and anything said above should not be taken as legal advice. Please request a copy of the lease and get real legal professional help if you are still in need of assistance.