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.
He has always been paying his rent till now in cash and he has no lease. I think i can use this as my defense that he has no record of him paying me rent and how long has he been renting for. I can go to count and say he has been renting for past 3 mo and i just realised it was illegal. I bought the house the way it is, i havent modified anythign. I guess only thing i would have to do is take the stove out. Does having bathroom with standing shower considered illegal?
not having a lease works against the landlord... you cant even prove what the rent was supposed to be.... the other problem is as the one bringing suit you need enough evidence that he was paying rent in order to get the case even open so the judge can say to the tenant show me you paid.
ideally you need to swap receipts. the tenant signs yours and you give him one.... you bring all your receipts to court and go look i have jan ,feb and march,,, i have no april and may..
of course you could have thrown those away but it at least establishes a pattern that lets the judge open the case to even ask the tenent whats up
in our building all tenants mail back a receipt with their check. dont forget the tenent has the cancelled check, you have nothing without that receipt coming back.
having an illegal apartment whether its rented or not dosnt make things any different. even if it was family in it not paying rent its all the same in court
Last edited by mathjak107; 12-04-2009 at 04:00 AM..
I was reading this thread, and I was wondering what would be the downside of just ignoring this guy until he moves away. Eventually he will--no one wants to live in a basement forever. As long as the situation isn't unsafe and he is fairly quiet and keeps his door closed, you could just go about your life--and hopefully one day come home to find him gone.
change locks? Even if the tenant agreed to leave and said that they have another place.
My tenant has been playing with me. She said she can not afford the rent any more and is going to move out. Then she said she is staying promised to sign another 6 months lease, then said no again. So she paid rent for one more month and said she is moving out at the end of that month. I have another renter with a signed lease and a date that I promised to have the apartment ready for him, thinking she was moving because she said so and promised.
I had her sign a "Notice to Vacate Form," as soon as she said she only needs another month to move. So its 2 days after that date and there are no signs of her moving.
My tenant has been playing with me. She said she can not afford the rent any more and is going to move out. Then she said she is staying promised to sign another 6 months lease, then said no again. So she paid rent for one more month and said she is moving out at the end of that month. I have another renter with a signed lease and a date that I promised to have the apartment ready for him, thinking she was moving because she said so and promised.
I had her sign a "Notice to Vacate Form," as soon as she said she only needs another month to move. So its 2 days after that date and there are no signs of her moving.
So what should I do?
Under no circumstances change any locks as this is absolutely illegal. Your tenant hasn't signed another lease so is on a month to month. You need to file immediately for eviction since she hasn't moved by the date she agreed to. You may get stuck in a bind now with the new tenant and, if that happens, you may need to seek legal advice where that's concerned. Go to your local small claims court tomorrow and get the ball rolling. Good luck!
im in the chicago area and i have a tenant that im evicting because she wont pay her rent , she got a lwayer and says the basement is illegal to be renting now shes been there for 3 months with out paying rent i have to appear in court for an update status after i told the judge that all i wanted was possession of the apartment now i got served with a letter stating by the tenants lawyer that i have to pay 1/3 of the rent back to tenant how is that possible if she hasn't payed rent in 3 months
im in the chicago area and i have a tenant that im evicting because she wont pay her rent , she got a lwayer and says the basement is illegal to be renting now shes been there for 3 months with out paying rent i have to appear in court for an update status after i told the judge that all i wanted was possession of the apartment now i got served with a letter stating by the tenants lawyer that i have to pay 1/3 of the rent back to tenant how is that possible if she hasn't payed rent in 3 months
The attorney is probably claiming that you have to return rents paid by the tenant because the apartment is not a legal residence (as you've already discovered). You don't say how long your tenant has lived in the apartment or for how long she did pay rent but any determination on whether or not rent has to be repaid to the tenant because it's an illegal apartment is up to the judge and not the attorney. It is NOT usual for a judge to award repayment of rent to a tenant under these circumstances but it's unlikely that the tenant in turn will be directed to pay you rent from the time she stopped paying to the date that she vacates the place. Your court hearing should clear everything up and you might consider hiring an attorney. Good luck.
It must be nice to be a tenant that does not pay rent, yet cannot be kicked out right away, and that the landlord has to pay lots of money to have a bad tenant kicked out. Meanwhile the tenant is able to squat rent free while the landlord goes thru all the trouble for a jerk tenant to be kicked out.
My girlfriend and i live in and basement apartment I know its is illigal My girlfriend is moving out. The land lord and I made a verbal agreement that I could stay as long as I want at a re-adjusted rent. 4 weeks before the lease was over she said she is not going to let either of us live hear anymore and via text message has basically destroyed my life and the visits I have with my son. I called the housing people and they are coming.. Was that a mistake? Can I stay here? What can I do?
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.
change locks? Even if the tenant agreed to leave and said that they have another place.
