Renter advice? Can't pay... (attorney, tenants, landlords)

[JR Smiles]

A cousin of mine is in a jam. His lease is up in September/08, he is current on his payments, due for 7/1 currently. His landlord notified him that the yard and flower beds are out of shape, needing to be cleaned, and the brown spots in the yard sodded over. He's barely able to afford his payments as it is.


He has a new cheaper place lined up to rent as of August 10th.
He wants to tell his landlord he will not be able to pay for July, or costs to repair yardwork. He has a deposit of a little over one month's rent at the property manager. He's also moved in his girlfriend who isn't on the lease.
I know he isn't the best tenant, he's a good guy, but lost his job for a few months, and got a new one making a lot less money. Seems to be a recurring theme nowadays.


I was a Realtor for a few years, but never dealt with any rentals. He came to me for advice. I wanted to reach out to this community to hear from some experienced landlords.
What options does he have? What recourse does the landlord have, and how likely is he to pursue?


Thanks for any help, I appreciate it.

[Lilybeans]

The security deposit is not a rent deposit, first of all.

If he has his last month's rent on deposit, that may help him defray his costs.

The landlord can sue him for the balance of what remains on the lease. If the landlord can't rent it, you cousin may end up with a judgment against him for the unpaid rent, costs and attorney's fees. If the landlord can re-rent, your cousin would be responsible for the difference in the rent.


worst case, he's probably looking at two or three months rental as a judgment. If that happens, the LL could garnish his wages to collect. Or, the LL could just let him out of the lease. That happens sometimes as well. I guess the question is why doesn't his girlfriend contribute to the rent?

[Prinny]

I'm a landlord too and I'd have to say what is the tenants problem really shouldn't have to become the landlords problem.

From watching Judge Judy she'd wouldn't give the tenant much sympathy. He signed the lease saying he was financially responsible. Also if the lease doesn't have his G/F on the lease it showing he isn't a good tenant.

[stpeteguy]

Originally Posted by JR Smiles

A cousin of mine is in a jam. His lease is up in September/08, he is current on his payments, due for 7/1 currently. His landlord notified him that the yard and flower beds are out of shape, needing to be cleaned, and the brown spots in the yard sodded over. He's barely able to afford his payments as it is.


He has a new cheaper place lined up to rent as of August 10th.
He wants to tell his landlord he will not be able to pay for July, or costs to repair yardwork. He has a deposit of a little over one month's rent at the property manager. He's also moved in his girlfriend who isn't on the lease.
I know he isn't the best tenant, he's a good guy, but lost his job for a few months, and got a new one making a lot less money. Seems to be a recurring theme nowadays.


I was a Realtor for a few years, but never dealt with any rentals. He came to me for advice. I wanted to reach out to this community to hear from some experienced landlords.
What options does he have? What recourse does the landlord have, and how likely is he to pursue?


Thanks for any help, I appreciate it.

How is cleaning up flower beds going to cost him anything?? It might be a little work, but that's all.
Sod can be found pretty cheap, a little over a dollar(i think) for a 1'x1' square. If it's just a few patches, probably wouldn't cost that much to make it look good.
If he does a really nice job, getting the place back in as good a shape as it was when he moved in, the landlord might forgive the remainder of the lease and let him move early.

Bottom line, you can't leave it worse than you found it, and expect the landlord to eat the costs.

[Keeper]

While I don't agree with letting a place go but is it in the lease that he will keep the yard in a certain condition? I do agree with the others as far as he can clean up the flower beds himself.

I lived around lots of renters and most barely mowed the yard let alone do anything with the flower beds or grass.