Residential Real Estate Broker · Chicago Suburbs, IL · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 594 votes
So we all agree obvious PITA applicants are to be avoided. To those more experienced out there, how do you reject them without them claiming discrimination and suing you? I'd like to tell this applicant that "I'm renting to someone else" but what if I don't get that someone else for a while?
If they call and ask about their application, tell them that you are still taking applications. Then as soon as someone qualifies, tell them you have accepted another applicant and wish them good luck in their search.
I'm not talking pro bono. I'm talking contingency fee. It doesn't exist in all states, but it does in my state. "The basic concept of the contingency fee agreement is that the client is out little or no upfront expenses; you as a client do not pay legal fees unless and until you win, and then the lawyer receives a percentage of your recovery as his or her fee. If you lose your case, there is no legal fee at all for the lawyer." And of course when they lose, which they will, I'm out my legal fees. You can't hire contingency fee defense when the person suing has no assets.
I don't see a lawyer taking this non-case on contingency. The application wasn't completed in full, so you can't even consider them as a tenant. End of story.
I fully understand pro bono legal aid shops and complaints to HUD I owed over 200 homes that had HUD tenants in them.. Unless your just blatant ( which I doubt you would be since your already worried about it enough to post on a public forum about the issue). The tenant gets turned down for whatever reason they just go the next landlord that is desperate to rent and will take a HUD voucher as the only qualification from the tenant. this is very common in areas with very large % of Hud tenants.
I guess I just fall back on my 40 years at this and people just get crazy worried about getting sued.. of course it happens but its far more common in partnership disputes than with contract disputes or tenant disputes. At least I have never had one.. and If I did here is how it would go.
Tenant gets mad goes to pro bono shop.. you get a letter.. You respond and make piece end of the discussion those that get in trouble get bull headed and try to fight these little fights instead of just moving on and maybe giving the aggrieved tenant 500 bucks to go away that will usually do it :)
Now if your a serial offender and have a big operation this is another story completely but for all intense and purposes some small time investor with a few homes to rent just does not fall into the category of deep pockets. Law suits cost a heck of a lot of money
Jay,
Sorry, but read the links I provide below for how a discrimination lawsuit goes. It costs the tenant NOTHING, because HUD / DOJ / ACLU prosecutes for the plaintiff making the complaint of discrimination. And there are landlords losing these cases - due to ignorance of how the law operates when it comes to discrimination in fair housing. And when the landlord loses, the landlord often has to pay the plaintiff's legal fees! In other words, those pro bono attorneys can get paid by the landlord.
That's just a sampling of fairly recent cases and most of those went against the landlord; one of those still seems to be pending. And I included some that aren't due to racism so that others understand that discrimination comes in different forms other than the one most common / obvious.
If you want to search for more cases, you can browse this next link:
Real Estate Investor · Audubon, PA · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 8k+ votes
12y
If they haven't completed an application, then they haven't formally applied; so you haven't really declined their application. If you have offered to show them the unit and have offered them an application to be filled out, then you have not discriminated - provided that is what you make EACH AND EVERY prospect do in order to get that unit.
Discrimination here would happen if you actually rented to them without them first having filled out the application that you require of all other prospects!
Residential Real Estate Broker · Chicago Suburbs, IL · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 594 votes
12y
Thanks @Steve Babiak , I will take a look at your links. Probably why the NTN guy I talked to told me to be careful.
I am very careful to do and say the same things to everyone. When people get into the, "here's my situation" convo I tell them upfront that we can't make exceptions for anyone because we need to apply the same rules to everyone.