Malvern, PA · Member since 2015 · 37 posts · 3 votes
Hi All!
Unfortunately, I am in the process of evicting a tenant in Pottstown, PA. My property management company has handled the eviction to this point - filing, etc. The court ruled in my favor - Yay! and the tenant appealed - Boo!
My property manager says this is as far as they go and I need to find an attorney to handle things from here. Any suggestions?
Attorney · Nashville, TN · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
9y
Hi Victoria Dransoff
Once the tenant appeals the matter to the Court of Common Pleas, it can unfortunately get tricky. You can end up spending a lot of money dealing with the appeal process.
Number one issue you have to deal with is the timing of the complaint. At this point, I assume you already received a document title "Notice of Appeal." Once that occurs, you typically have 20 days to file a new complaint. Unlike the magistrate form, there is generally no set form for an eviction complaint at the Court of Common Pleas. If you don't file within 20 days, the tenant can take steps to reverse the magistrate court's decision.
Is this property located in Malvern? What's the basis for the eviction?
Malvern, PA · Member since 2015 · 37 posts · 3 votes
9y
Thanks for your response. The property is in Pottstown.
The basis for the eviction is that they are behind on the rent to the tune of $2800 with late fees. They have been late with the rent just about every month, usually paying only part of the rent.
The property manager told me that this now will go into mediation which could take months to happen and in the meantime any payments go into an escrow account. So it sounds like I won't be getting anything from this tenant until the eviction is resolved. That's what bothers me most.
While not getting the entire rent is not right and irritates me greatly, I would rather get some than none. I still have to pay the taxes, water bill, etc. and can't afford to continue to pay out if there is nothing coming in.
Any thoughts on where to go from here?
If the tenant is really desperate (or malicious), he or she may also decide to file for bankruptcy. That could potentially give the tenant at least two months if not lot longer.
My first non-legal advice is to first make sure that you have filed everything that you must file. Many people make mistakes when dealing with a magistrate appeal to the Court of Common Pleas. Now some judges are bit more relaxed when dealing with a pro-se litigant. But that's not always the case. Unfortunately, I can't think of a good, affordable lawyer in the Pottstown area of the top of my head. Even the affordable ones will likely ask you for a decent retainer (anywhere from $2500 to $5000).
I'm not sure how the mediation program works in your county. Try to find out if there is any consequence to this tenant not being able to pay. If this tenant is habitually late on rent or fail to pay at all, he or she might make the same mistake again. Perhaps there are some consequences to that.
But ultimately, consider whether it is possible for you to settle with this tenant. It is often difficult to collect monetary judgments against tenants. So perhaps a compromise is for you to forgive all her past debts to you in exchange for her surrendering the property. I know some folks on BP do the "cash for keys" idea where they actually pay the tenants to move out. I don't know what your situation is, but often times settlement ends up being the best option.