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I moved out of an apartment and got a nice sized bill for about $1500. On the letter it says please pay within 15 days. I was not prepared to payout that much and I think they are shafting me on this one yet the amount is small enough that its not worth the effort to fight ( I do acknowledge a bit of damage so its not like its completely off base). Soooo since I think they were quite liberal with the damage estimate I want to pay as slow as possible. I was thinking of paying it off in 50 dollar increments to be a pain in their ass. Can I be taken to court for slow payment? The legalize is a reasonable amount of time but what is reasonable varies from financial situation to financial situation.
Any advice? Do I have to pay more per month or can I go even lower?
The first thing is to ask if you can pay in installments and work out a compromise. Going to court will cost you dearly as the landlord's case seems pretty firm even by your own admission and you'll end up paying his court fees. Then you'll have a judgement against you which will negatively affect your credit rating and your ability to qualify for apartments down the road - etc. etc. etc.
You're not in the driver's seat on this one so best you take a big step back and talk to the landlord/PMC about possibly making arrangements to pay off the debt. To do otherwise and/or play silly games would be simply foolish.
So basically what I'm reading is that you acknowledge you owe at least some of the money, but because they have the guts to tell you to pay what you owe, you want to be a jerk and make it as difficult as possible? WOW!
Are you trying to get a bad rental referral? Do you just not care about being an adult and owning your own actions? Pretty slimy thing to do in my opinion.
Personal opinion, if you can't afford to pay what you owe, contact the company and work out a payment plan. Most property managers will negotiate the amount down if you can pay in a lump sum, or negotiate a payment plan if you can't. If you disagree with some of the charges, call up and calmly, without using cuss words or yelling or insulting, discuss with the landlord on what you think is fair.
Harsh judgment with no knowledge of ANY of the facts.
No I am certainly not a slime ball and the complex has been reported to the BBB on multiple occasion. A neighbor who was moving out a week later had similar issues. I acknowledge some damage just not 1500 dollars worth. It would just cost me more to fight it than pay. I think they would have to have the case moved out of small claims since the amount is only 1500, before I would worry about lawyer fees. Correct me if I am wrong on that. I went to small claims court before and usually the judge ask for the parties to work it out.
I am going to email and suggest a payment plan I was looking to see how much play I have in the terms.
So anyone out there with some USEFUL information of tenant/lawyer obligations in this scenario.
Harsh judgment with no knowledge of ANY of the facts.
No I am certainly not a slime ball and the complex has been reported to the BBB on multiple occasion. A neighbor who was moving out a week later had similar issues. I acknowledge some damage just not 1500 dollars worth. It would just cost me more to fight it than pay. I think they would have to have the case moved out of small claims since the amount is only 1500, before I would worry about lawyer fees. Correct me if I am wrong on that. I went to small claims court before and usually the judge ask for the parties to work it out.
I am going to email and suggest a payment plan I was looking to see how much play I have in the terms.
So anyone out there with some USEFUL information of tenant/lawyer obligations in this scenario.
Nobody called you a "slime ball". Far from it. You posted for opinions and that's what you're receiving so your defensiveness and dismissive comments are uncalled for. Again, the only "play" you have is what the landlord/PMC will agree to and, again, you are not in the driver's seat so best advice is to compose your letter accordingly.
OP, First, there's no minimum for small claims court. Just a maximum, which is well above $1500. If you're in a state that allows lawyers, I can understand your not wanting to fight in court.
But, I think trying to negotiate a lower amount is what you should first do, even if you don't want to go to court.
How much would you think was fair? $1,000? Let's start with that.
Dear Slime Ball PMC:
I dispute the amount you are asking for regarding damages to the unit I vacated at __________________________(address). However, I would like to avoid the time and expense of going to court. Therefore, I propose the following settlement.
I will pay you $1,000 in monthly payments of $100.00 until paid in full in ten months.
If this is acceptable, please respond in writing accepting my offer by _________________(date).
If I have not received an acceptance by the above date, I will take my chances that the court will find I owe you less than $1,000, or perhaps even nothing at all. If the court finds I do owe you money, I will ask the court to mandate a payment plan, as well.
I hope that we can resolve this amicably, and that you will accept my offer.
With Love and Affection,
You
Your Address
If you're not okay with the bluff on taking them to court if they don't accept your offer, just delete that paragraph. The mention of court above is a softer threat, but still allows them to come back with a counter-offer.
This may vary with location, but in areas I am familiar with, the LL is only allowed to charge you what the repairs and cleaning actually cost him/her. They should send you receipts or provide them upon request.
If the LL is out $1500 for stuff they paid for to clean up after you, you should just pay it today. If they are BSing and do not have receipts, or are sending you an 'estimate', you should tell them that you are happy to pay what you owe, but you want to wait until they get the work done and see if the total might be a bit lower than the estimate.
Do not antagonise the LL (do not tease happy fun ball) because you don't want them to get their friend the contractor to write up a giant fake receipt. Approach the situation with good, but fair, intentions, and you may be treated the same way in return.
Thank you to the final two replies! This is useful information ( I really like the form letter). You figure everyone would be on the up and up but that is not always the case. I will query the culprits without the threat of court on a possible payment plan. I know I have an inflated estimate (cleaning when I washed the walls % shampooed etc...), but in the long run its small potatoes. I will shoot for a 100 a month agreement or something. A small victory.
That's how the internet works. The only facts we can work with are the ones you give us. When you specifically say that your intention is to pay as slowly as you can get away with without being sued, and that you want to be "a pain in the ass", that comes across as being a jerk. Sorry, but that's just the way your post reads.
$1500 is definitely worth taking a tenant to court over. In my area, that would be a small claims hearing, with no lawyers. If we won, the judge would likely grant us the right to collect somewhere around $3000, by the time legal fees and damages (court granted damages, not damage to the property) are built in. We've had one that we got the $5000 maximum allowed amount from a $2000 original total. We would have the person's wages garnished to collect.
My advice? If you don't have the money, just borrow it and pay off the landlord and get it over with. You can make your $50 a month payments to the place you borrowed the money from instead of getting into a fight with the landlord and maybe ending up in court with a judgment on your credit report and a bad landlord reference.
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