Renter's Question: suspect our landlady might not be paying mortgage! (Houston: short sales, real estate) - Texas (TX) - City-Data Forum

Sampaguita · 09-01-2009, 10:43 PM

We're currently renting in MO City. I went to deposit our rent check at homeowner's bank only to be told that there was a hold on our check. After a bit of confusion, it was explained to me that the reason for the hold wasn't that I had 8 bounced checks last month but that the homeowner did. Our check was being held to make sure that all 8 of the bounced checks cleared - remainder of the funds I deposited would then go into her account.

So this has us now wondering if she's even paying her mortgage. The reason we wonder is because since we've moved in we've found out that she had stopped paying her gas, cable & water bills (our water got turned off a month after we moved in because HER acct was in arrears) a few months back while she was still living here (I realize now why she spent so much time at her daughter's house) plus we're still getting her mail which contains a lot of attorney and creditor "looking" letters - really, those are hard to miss for what they are. Our mail carrier said they never received a fwding address request.

We're also pretty unhappy with her because several things that we were assured work just fine (the sprinkler system, the stove top, the dishwasher for starters) don't. Every time we bring something up she says she can't afford to have that done right now.

She's living in LA now and conveniently doesn't answer her phone.

Of course we're making assumptions about her not paying the mortgage but we experienced something similar when we were living in San Diego and found out (just as we'd decided to relocate to Houston) that the homeowner there had not paid her mortgage for 3 months! Her accountant finally told us 2 months ahead of our lease renewal - she had wanted to wait until the end of our lease to continue receiving "rent" from us. Blah! Thank goodness for her accountant's moral compass!

DH and I don't know whether there is much of anything that we can do. Our lease is not up 'til July '10 and honestly, the thought of moving again with 2 young children, wheel-chaired husband and a boat-load of stuff just is not appealing. It's expensive to boot plus finding a one-story floor plan in this area that works for DH is not easy.

We're thinking we might just have to wait to see what happens because unless she comes out & tells us, I don't know how we'd find out whether she's paying her mortgage. At the same time, we don't want to be blind-sided with an eviction notice.

Any thoughts? I've read somewhere (here on c-d probably) that owner/landlord rights are stronger than renter's in Texas but not sure how that would play in our case. For as much as they put renters through the ringer for credit checks, after our experiences I wish we could get a handle on what kind of landlord we're getting. BTW - our landlord in The Woodlands was an absolute JEWEL!!!!! Wish all landlords were like him!

Thanks-
Sampa

jfre81 · 09-01-2009, 11:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sampaguita

DH and I don't know whether there is much of anything that we can do. Our lease is not up 'til July '10 and honestly, the thought of moving again with 2 young children, wheel-chaired husband and a boat-load of stuff just is not appealing. It's expensive to boot plus finding a one-story floor plan in this area that works for DH is not easy.

Probably not what you want to hear, but I'd bet you a month's rent she's not paying her mortgage and as such it's on its way to foreclosure.

How Long To Vacate After Foreclosure In Texas

Change: New Federal Foreclosure Law Gives Residential Tenants 90 Days to Vacate : Tough Times for Lenders

I'm no expert on the law here so I don't have a whole lot of advice other than to say it's time to start looking for another place. As I'm understanding it you will have at least 90 days to vacate per a new federal law that I never heard about before pulling this up.

Sampaguita · 09-02-2009, 12:22 AM

I'll have you know that I just breathed out a sigh of relief after reading that 2nd link. I've been operating in a fog all day and haven't even been able to think clearly enough to look up that kind of info (which is why I came here...you guys are making me lazy).

Thanks, jfre! I can go sleep a little easier now.

travelguy_73 · 09-02-2009, 07:11 AM

The same thing happened to a couple friends of mine who were renting a big new Bellaire house while theirs was being finished. One day a notice appeared on the front door (this was before the 90-day rule), and they had something like 10 days to pack up and find a new place. So the 90-day rule is a lifesaver!

caldvn · 09-02-2009, 07:22 AM

Just to try to make light of the situation, maybe you can get the house for a steal!

Mom2Feebs · 09-02-2009, 07:30 AM

Okay, so this is just totally MESSED UP!

I mean, good grief! I think if landlords are going to be so strict with their qualifiers, renters should be able to have a few of their own, like "Can I get a statement from your mortgage holder that you are current?"

chris_ut · 09-02-2009, 07:56 AM

Sounds like your landlady is in a bind and it might be that your rent check is her only source of income. The repair part is an easy fix. Simply have someone repair the issues and deduct the cost from your rent check. Send her the receipts when you pay the rent. She does not have the resources to fight you about it so you win that battle. Also consider since this lady is tapped out there is no way your gonna get your deposit back. Make sure you underpay your final months rent to cover what your going to lose in the deposit.

modster · 09-02-2009, 10:44 AM

This may or may not work, but might be worth a try since it is fairly easy. (It may also be a little bit of going around the block to get next door too, but it can work).

I would to to Foreclosure Real Estate Listings | RealtyTrac

enter your zip code up at the top,and click on the map function instead of the list function.

Find your street and zoom in on it. See if there is a "marker" on your block in the general vicinity of your house. Unless you sign up for a membership it will NOT give you the address, it will however list the square footage of the property that is in foreclosure proceedings. The sq ft that they list is lifted off of HCAD records. Then go to Harris County Appraisal District and look up your house by address.

If the square footages match, then bingo, you have a winner, (or more like a loser). It is not that hard to do, and if it is there on realtytrac then you will know.

Sampaguita · 09-02-2009, 11:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by travelguy_73

The same thing happened to a couple friends of mine who were renting a big new Bellaire house while theirs was being finished. One day a notice appeared on the front door (this was before the 90-day rule), and they had something like 10 days to pack up and find a new place. So the 90-day rule is a lifesaver!

That's what we were thinking could happen so finding out about the 90-day rule is definitely a lifesaver.

Quote:

Originally Posted by caldvn

Just to try to make light of the situation, maybe you can get the house for a steal!

Thought about that too but there's a possibility that we'd only find out after things were in motion. Short sales & foreclosures are tricky so even though we occupy the house, there's no guarantee we could get in as buyers. I know someone back in SD who was buying in a short sale - offered a pretty good cash offer but they never heard back from the bank on the offer; realtor only found out by mail that the bank had decided to foreclose.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mom2Feebs

Okay, so this is just totally MESSED UP!

I mean, good grief! I think if landlords are going to be so strict with their qualifiers, renters should be able to have a few of their own, like "Can I get a statement from your mortgage holder that you are current?"

I know! We are so over renting after this. I think we have a pretty good idea of where we want to land now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by chris_ut

Sounds like your landlady is in a bind and it might be that your rent check is her only source of income. The repair part is an easy fix. Simply have someone repair the issues and deduct the cost from your rent check. Send her the receipts when you pay the rent. She does not have the resources to fight you about it so you win that battle. Also consider since this lady is tapped out there is no way your gonna get your deposit back. Make sure you underpay your final months rent to cover what your going to lose in the deposit.

We've actually already done that with the "essentials" - stove top & fridge.

Quote:

Originally Posted by modster

This may or may not work, but might be worth a try since it is fairly easy. (It may also be a little bit of going around the block to get next door too, but it can work).
...

Thanks modster! I will definitely look into that.

******

Thanks everyone for your feedback & helpful advice. I'll let you know what transpires (if anything!). I do hope we're worrying over nothing but my gut is telling me differently.

Topaz · 09-02-2009, 09:16 PM

Sampaguita, if anything related to this causes you to need legal advice, I was very impressed with the Consumer Law group at the University of Houston when I had some landlord/tenant questions. You can reach them via the People's Lawyer Web site. They answered some of my questions and they didn't charge me anything.

After renting, it was a relief to buy a home, or at least it was until the HOA started bugging us about our fence, but that's a different story.