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.
Hi, I desperately need help on a non paying roommate.
He moved in May 7, 2010 from a craigs list ad. He was supposed to move in with the first and last months rent($1000) but let him slide on payments for the last month rent and he could only give us $300 for may, owing us $100.
When we asked for the rest of May($100) he avdoided us like the plague and when cornered, came up with half. Then June 1 came and went with no payment. He even hit me in the neck when i told him to pay his rent or get out. The police were called but I reluctantly dropped charges. But that is another story(owner of the house(my partner) asked me no to...he now wished I did).
So now it is June 12, the cable is due, the electric is due and he lied to me about his last paycheck(I have proof of his worked hours). He will not be giving us any cash in the next week. I want him out of this house.
*****No lease was signed. It was an oral contract and he broke that contract by not paying and breaking all the rules on that oral lease******NOTHING is signed.
1. Do I need to go to the clerk of court to give him a 3 day notice? Can it be hand written(no printer ink)?
2. Is it true that if he contests it he would be required to hand over the entire rent ammount to the Clerk of courts in escarole(sic)? He does not have it, so I would think that they will tell him the law does not protect people from not paying their bills but only for a dispute.
3. He purposely wastes energy. Can I shut his window air conditioner off at the source?
4. I fear for my well being because he assaulted me, but the police told me I can't just kick him out and change the locks. Can I legally "remind" him that the ad was only for the room rental, not the rest of the house. Can I restrict him by telling him he is not allowed in the other rooms? (he has his own bathroom)
5. His room was spotless before he moved in. Pictures were taken. Now it is a disaster. He is a pig. It looks and smells like a dump in there. Is he liable for any damages and professional cleaning? The smell is horrid.
Thanks in advance. I'm really in a mess. We were so good to this loser by letting him use our computer all he wants, fed him, let hin use our TV in his room, involved him with our friends....but he is satan incarnate.
Last edited by 2goldens; 06-24-2010 at 02:54 PM..
Reason: Moved thread from ORLANDO,FL
I had a rental property and had to evict a bumb and his bumb wife. He ended up call the cops on me because I thought he had left, (gone for a week) after his move out date..but he did not. The cops were very nice...but hired a lawyer...about 125 dollars first visit...you have to go through the process or the law will get you....
Read up on it online...tough break, but that's life...don't get emotional about it...just do it legal and avoide any down the road problems...
your gonna need the lawyer but befor you do that you can lock up the food take your tv back and keep YOUR towels and other items you need locked up .. you do NOT have to share anything .. I learned the hard way with my own family that I couldnt just boot them out because they had lived there longer than 30 days . I did NOT have to supply the bum with nice stuff and was allowed to lock him out of all my things .. he had a room and a bed.. no tv.. no food in my house or anything that would normally be shared .. like a referidge.. yup I locked him out of all that .. a sleeping room is just that .. NO KITCHEN/house privaliges either .. no phone on my dime no cable hook up in that room and no computer usage or access . ( block or shut off the wireless router .. ). and yes I did go out of my way to drive him out .. music drumming and other sleep annoying things in the middle of the day .. sleepng got in the way of his looking for a job daytimes.. he could walk the streets all night partying so .. I figured he could spend his days job hunting or moving out .. and we did talk mean in front of his door .. I had to use a lawyer to get him out but untill he left he KNEW he wasnt welcome in my house .. ..
btw .. call in the cops with a drug dog and tell them your worried the tenant is keeping stuff in the house .. ( thats what started my problems the kid was using grrr) they can search his room and he cant do anything about it ..
YOUR rights are sorta limited but no one says you have to allow him to intimadate or abuse your house/family
you got a copy of the ad? post it on his door and tell him it does not include house privialges and tell him to confine himself to his room and the front door. then lock everything up that he is not allowed to use ..
do NOT leave your house unattended either ..
playing nice with losers like this guy is a waste of time and effort .. unfortunatilly the courts give scum like this "rights" and make sure they know them .. just dont cross the line and do something you can get arrested for ..
it might be your house but .........
good luck ..
Here's my advice to get him out.
1. Go To Court - You may have to pay a filing fee.
2. LEARN the landlord-tenant laws in your state. The information may be at the courthouse or online. If you can't decipher it, be prepared to PAY again for a lawyer to assist you.
3. YES, if Florida is anything like Maryland then the tenant can sue you or counter-sue for a variety of "violations" and pay into "escrow" while you get nothing or WORSE, while you spend $$ fixing the violation.
4. Start Providing Receipts - Think it's smart to accept rent in cash? It is...until the tenant decides not to pay you and you don't have any evidence. I just saw a case like that in court. Unless you accept checks or money orders, you need to do this each time you get a payment. I suggest emails or the old-fashioned carbon receipts.
5. Start Sending Notices - Since you don't have a written lease, you should technically have a verbal agreement, right? Well, not if the tenant goes to court and says he's your GUEST and you NEVER asked him to pay any rent. LOCATE your craigslist ad if it's still available so you can try to prove he's a tenant. From now on, start emailing and/or mailing him notices saying the rent is late. You can't evict him out based on these letters, but you can at least show them in court.
Also, his security deposit is what you get to keep if he has damaged your house.
If you want additional damages, you can sue.
One poster, likely never returned to read in the last 15 days.
Some room mates can be hell, some home owners can be hell as well. My dad cut power and water off on the back house to drive my sister and her husband off. They stole property and never paid rent, surprised they did not sue him thou.
Post a handwritten note on the door (3 days notice) and make a picture showing it on the door and the date.
Go to the court house and take care of the legal issues...
This is a dead beat and you need to get rid of this person...sob stories won't pay the bills and that is what these tenants know the best..telling sob stories.
Next time ...get a back bone and don't fall for the sob stories. No money or partial payment....No moving in! That is basic LL-tenant law!
You are going to def. need to consult with a lawyer, or the county on that one. I have had to deal with situations like this, and I feel for you. I hope you took the advice, and lock everything of your up, disconnect everything you can so he has no luxuries available. Make this scum bags life as uncomfortable as possible, and maybe like a pest, he will migrate somewhere else. Also, if he ever confronts you, you def. need to call the cops and report him ASAP! May the force be with you.
BMike24, I deliberately deleted most of your post to reply as it seems you failed to read even the last post on this thread which just happened to be mine and where I noted that the OP hasn't responded further since June of this year. Three months.
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.
