Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My boyfriend and I rented a house in Indiana from May 1 2009-April 10 2010. The house used to be the Landlords primary residence and she would rent it out by the room. We signed a lease saying we would be the only tenants. The landlord mentioned having to come in town once a month to collect rent and if she could stay. We agreed that was fine. She would also be gone all winter according to her. On May 1st we took possession. however we were unable to unpack and move all of our belongings because our landlord was still living there so was her daughter. Needless to say, the landlady never actually "moved out" she would come over unannounced stay for days, come over to do laundry use our internet and never paid a dime. She also brought and kept her large dog in the house. We have 2 small dogs. I witnessed her dog urinating in our bedroom twice. My dogs then started marking the spot. There was no move in inspection. She is now suing me for $5000 to replace 18 year old carpet due to pet stains and even older carpet and hardwood floor refinishing for a downstairs room that already had stains on it.(i never saw hardwood floors) In addition there is a charge for painting. the last time she painted was over 5 years ago. There are other charges that do not make sense. Add to it she started renovating the living room before we turned over the keys. she proceeded to move all of our boxes into a corner and was painting spackling etc. she completely moved in also prior to us surrendering the keys. Can she do this. Shouldn't 18 year old carpet hold no useful life yet. In addition since she had a dog living in the house for 13 years and never replaced the carpet how can she prove our dogs did any damage. I am trying to find the right wording for how we feel that she is wanting us to pay for renovating her home. Also she was not around for a move-out inspection.
it was a general list, repaired screens (not sure which ones), paint for smudged walls (not sure which one) replacement of 10 year old dish towels, carpet replacement and cleaning of floors, not hanging curtain rods (that she took down to do renovations)
Another fine example of a bad landlord taking advantage of a situation.
Tell her :
1. You are taking her to small claims court if she insists you pay for 18 year urine stained carpet that HER dogs ruined.
2. Tell her you will present to the judge her use of your internet, water, electricity for ONE YEAR.
3. If you moved into fresh paint, then pay her for painting. If you moved into yellowed unpainted walls, refuse to pay her and take that to the judge too.
4. She sounds like a cheap greedy landlord that used YOUR utilities. I am sure the next tenant will get financially assaulted too when she tries for new window blinds and such...
She will never change. It's time to teach her a lesson. Let the Judge decide.
Line up any credible witnesses you might have to take to court. Did anyone else witness her dogs peeing on the carpet? Can anyone else testify about how often she actually stayed? Does the lease say she would be staying at all?
Please update us after court -- good luck! I hope you cream her.
We have a court case next week. She is suing me. I am also trying to decide how much to counter sue. my deposit was $950.00
You should counter sue for more than. I would counter sue for treble damages(most states have it, usually 2x or 3x the deposit) plus some back rent for the time that she was your roommate. Is she suing you small claims court or civil court?
yes, I have witnesses on how frequent she was there. And no her name was not on the lease nor did it indicate she would be staying there at all. the lease lists my boyfriend and I as the only tenants. She did admit to the neighbor that her dog had urinated upstairs. That person will be indicating that to the court. I also have witnesses to indicate she would come over remove my or my guests laundry to do her own. it was a crazy and frustrating year. she is taking me to small claims. Am I correct in the thinking that 18 year old carpet is past its useful life. and then if she did not do a move in sheet is it her burdon of proof that the damage was not there before we moved in?
yes, I have witnesses on how frequent she was there. And no her name was not on the lease nor did it indicate she would be staying there at all. the lease lists my boyfriend and I as the only tenants. She did admit to the neighbor that her dog had urinated upstairs. That person will be indicating that to the court. I also have witnesses to indicate she would come over remove my or my guests laundry to do her own. it was a crazy and frustrating year. she is taking me to small claims. Am I correct in the thinking that 18 year old carpet is past its useful life. and then if she did not do a move in sheet is it her burdon of proof that the damage was not there before we moved in?
Yes the court will view the carpet is useless. Also one word of advice. Try to get the witnesses to come to court, as many times judges will not accept signed statements because the witness cannot be cross examined.
Find out what your state laws are regarding leasing. Many large cities often have landlord-tenant councils that post them on the internet. You can often find them by searching for "landlord tenant property laws, city, state".
My answers are based on Texas laws. Here landlord cannot charge a tenant for routine maintenance such as painting, periodic replacement of carpet, unless there were specific damages caused by the tenant beyond normal wear and tear. Yes 18 year old carpet has no life expectancy left. Those damages would be hard to prove if there was no inspection performed or photos taken prior to your moving in.
The landlords continued use of the property is definitely a violation of your property rights unless you agreed to same in the lease. But you may have compromised those rights somewhat by accommodating the intrusions. You could sue to recover costs associated with the lose of use of the property by her failure to vacate it, and the early renovation she started before you surrendered the keys. I'm assuming she started work before your lease term was up?
The fact that she kept a dog there which also damaged the carpet probably negates any claim for damages she could have for the carpet.
There is definitely no justification for her charging you to refinish a wood floor that was covered in carpet the entire time you were living there.
She does not have to do a move out inspection with you present, but she would be expected to have documented and be able to prove the damages.
I have never actually had to go to small claims court so I don't know if you can counter sue and have it heard at the same time as when her suit goes to court. Talk to the court and find out, but you definitely should show up prepared to defend yourself or she will win by default. Since she is putting you through this hassle I would definitely plan on suing her back. You might try talking to her and advising her of your intentions if she does not drop the lawsuit, you may be able to persuade her to make it all go away if she realizes she could end up stuck with damages, court costs and penalties.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
