You legally evicted your tenant today He owes 4 months back rent Can you collect it and how?

Answer 1

Yes. I suggest small claims court, which is quick, easy, informal, and requires no legal expertise or attorney. A small claims judgment can be collected in the same ways as a general court judgment. Note that small claims has a jurisdictional limit (usually around $4,000) so if the tenant owes more than the limit, you will need to retain an attorney and go to a court of general jurisdiction in the county. Some cities also have arbitration boards for tenant / landlord disputes which are quicker and cheaper and the decision is as enforcable as a judgment from a court.

Even after a successful suit in court, receiving the money is difficult if the tenant has no assets. Even if the tenant has assets it is difficult to receive full compensation. I say this because most judges will only garner a very minimal amount of wages which might see full payment after many years, perhaps decades and to get a bailiff to take enough posessions to cover the rent through a public auction is unrealistic; consider the reasons the tenant was likely renting in the first place. If the tenant still has property in the apartment, that property can usually be held and auctioned off to recover back payment and expenses.

Sometimes it really isn't worth trying to collect the debt. What you can do is report the offender to a credit bureau to put a fairly dark mark on their credit. Other options include selling the debt to a collections agency; you don't get all the money back but sometime something is better than nothing.

Don't try to collect on the back rent because it was "wrong" for them to have not paid. Take the emotion out of the decision and determine if your actions will help or hurt your bottom line.

Answer:

I took my case to small claims court. Here is what happened.

I had a renter who was 2 months behind on rent . I wanted to make sure everything I did was legal so I called the clerk of courts office to ask what I needed to do. First I had to give notice to the renter to pay the rent now or move out. I was informed it would be best to mail a letter and to tell the renter in person. After I did that I had to wait 10 days plus 3 days for the mailed letter a total of 13 days (you cannot count holidays and Sundays). The renter called me after she got my letter and said she was moving out. Well what she did was move most of her stuff out but left some stuff in every room in the house including the porches and basement. I knew this because when I thought she was through moving I went into the house to see what kind of shape it was in. The house was absolutely filthy and the carpet ruined with stains and cigarette burns. One room had a very poorly done paint job in a disgusting dark green color. I took pictures so I had something to take to court to show what the renter had done. I called the clerk of courts again and told them what she had done. They told me that until she handed me the keys that she still had possession of the property. So I waited till all the 13 days were up. I then could file a complaint. To do this I had to go to the clerk of courts office and fill out papers and pay $70.00 in cash. This was on a Monday. The court date was set for the following Tuesday. I was given a copy of the complaint and had to go next door to the sheriffs office to give them a copy and a self addressed stamped envelope with the renters name and address and $15.00 in cash. This was so a copy of the complaint would be mailed and for the sheriff to personally deliver a copy to the renter. I told them that she had not been there for awhile and they told me that if the renter was not there at the time the sheriff came he would post the complaint on the door. The next day I saw the complaint posted on the door. Later that day I noticed the complaint was not on the door. (I live behind this house). The following Tuesday I went to the court room at my appointed time. The renter was nowhere in sight. When my case came up I was told that because the renter did not show up and because the sheriff did not personally deliver the papers there could be no judgment against her and there was no way to collect any back rent or money for any damages. I ask if there was any other way I could collect any money for damages. He ask me if I had pictures and I told him I did. His response was that I had no legal right to go into the home for any reason without the permission of the renter. I was told I had to wait another 10 days not including Sundays and holidays and then I could come back and take out a writ against her. It would cost $15.00. At that time our wonderful sheriff would set up a time to meet me out there and take possession of the property and hand it back to me. I ask the judge what I was suppose to do with her stuff if she would not come and get it. He said I had to store it in a dry protected place for he thought 21 days. Then if she had not come to get it I could give it away but I could not sell it. I really did not believe I would ever collect any money from this person. I only wanted her out of my house. She knew how to work the justice system or in this case injustice system so she could drag this out as long as possible. Moral to this story, ALWAYS do a background check and a civil check. You can do this for free at our wonderful clerk of courts unless you want a copy, then you only have to pay a modest fee of $25.00 for each copy.

Never rent to anyone with a criminal record which I found out later my renter had. Never let the renter talk you into letting them pay rent later or believe any of their sob stories. Take action as soon as the renter is 1 day late don't wait. If you let them slide you may have to wait months before you can do anything with the property. The renter can always appeal the courts decision making it take longer. I have always tried to give people a chance but now when it comes to renting my house I won't. I have also gone to some websites to try to find out what my legal rights are as a landlord. I have come to the conclusion that I don't have any, only the renter does.