GA - Tenant Broke Lease and Left Without Paying Rent
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Real Estate Broker · Cody, WY · Member since 2010 · 28k+ posts · 41k+ votes
6yIt is very, very common for tenants to leave early and promise to pay everything they owe. Once they are out, they write you off and disappear.
There's not much you could do. You could take them to court for a judgment but collecting is almost impossible and you're likely to just end up with more expenses. You could track them down and threaten them or wave your arms wildly or plead that the unpaid rent is costing your mother that heart transplant you've been saving up for...but the tenant won't care.
My recommendation is that you turn the unit around ASAP, get it rented, and move on.
If your tenant caused $1,800 in cleaning and repairing, you may want to raise your screening standards for the next one.
The DIY Landlord Book4.7248 Reviews
8 Replies
- Real Estate Broker · Cody, WY · Member since 2010 · 28k+ posts · 41k+ votes6y
It is very, very common for tenants to leave early and promise to pay everything they owe. Once they are out, they write you off and disappear.
There's not much you could do. You could take them to court for a judgment but collecting is almost impossible and you're likely to just end up with more expenses. You could track them down and threaten them or wave your arms wildly or plead that the unpaid rent is costing your mother that heart transplant you've been saving up for...but the tenant won't care.
My recommendation is that you turn the unit around ASAP, get it rented, and move on.
If your tenant caused $1,800 in cleaning and repairing, you may want to raise your screening standards for the next one.
The DIY Landlord Book4.7248 Reviews - 6yTheresa HarrisPro MemberMember since 2019 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes
Nathan is right. Do what you said and send the registered letter to show that you are not returning the deposit and get it rented. At least you had a large deposit to cover the cleaning and turnover.
- Member since 2018 · 30 posts · 5 votes6y
Yes, all repairs are completed now and the property is listed. The advice given for these types of situations is usually to forget it about it and move on, but I wonder if my situation is any different. This is a tenant who had a good income and I'm sure will continue to have a good income in the future. I'm thinking of sending this over to a collection agency and letting them work on contingency. I don't mind giving up 50% of anything collected since it's better than 0.
I also assume that someone with a white collar job would be move inclined to pay off a debt than to risk it affecting their credit. Background checks are performed for many white collar positions and this would negatively affect him.
Worse case in a year, I'll file a 1099-C and let him deal with the aftermath.
- Investor · Jasper GA · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes6y
@James Sun What does your lease state as a penalty for breaking the lease early. Mine states they are to give me 30 days notice and pay 2 months penalty. In any event you are required to attempted to mitigate your losses by renting the property ASAP and you should be able to sue for loss rent, past due rent and damages. I just received a judgment in December under similar circumstances and will get my money. Note that Georgia is a LL friendly state and you can collect on a judgment via garnishment, attaching a bank account or filing a Fifa in the real estate records. It might take awhile but you can get your money if they stay in GA and don't go BK. Most magistrate courts are helpful. You might talk to a local Attorney, especially if your lease allows Attorney fees. Make sure you send the deposit disposition letter out in timely manor and send it certified with return receipt (check with the PO for exactly what to use). You will be able to find their new address.
- Real Estate Agent · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2014 · 683 posts · 317 votes6y
Originally posted by @James Sun:
Tenant informed me on the 2nd that he would be breaking his lease this month and leaving on the 8th. He also mentioned he would pay Feb. rent at a later date.
He sent me a text on the 9th that he moved out and left the keys and garage opener on the counter. I did a walk through of the property and got a quote of $1850 for cleaning, repairing a few items and painting some areas.
His deposit was $1800 so that covers the rehab work. What should be my next steps in order to maximize my chances to collect the lease break fees and Feb rent? He stopped responding to my calls, texts and emails. I will send him a certified letter (to my property address) with the final move-out form and breakdown of all fees.
He had a good white collar job with decent income when he first moved in - $6400/month.
What a shame. Has he mention the reason why he's breaking the lease? I think you should send him to collection but prepare for the worst outcome.
- Member since 2020 · 15 posts · 2 votes6y
Why are you not sending him a bill as allowed by your lease? Failure to pay. Small claims. People that make $80K can afford it but if you do not "ask" you cannot get it. Court docs on their credit file, then later collection agents.
You have legal docs. Do not just let it go by without enforcing them.
- Member since 2018 · 30 posts · 5 votes6y
My OP states "I will send him a certified letter (to my property address) with the final move-out form and breakdown of all fees." Of course I will go by the lease and send him a bill for all the fees stated in the lease. I'm just wondering if I'm better off going directly to a collection agency or through the court system.
Originally posted by @Jim Weigel:Why are you not sending him a bill as allowed by your lease? Failure to pay. Small claims. People that make $80K can afford it but if you do not "ask" you cannot get it. Court docs on their credit file, then later collection agents.
You have legal docs. Do not just let it go by without enforcing them.
- Investor · Alpharetta, GA · Member since 2015 · 241 posts · 185 votes6y
@James Sun- regarding your post...you cannot go to a collections agency regarding a broken lease. That is what Magistrate court is for - all landlord/tenants issues. Once a judge reviews your case and determines that the tenant does owe the funds, he/she approves the order and you are then able to hire a collections attorney...an attorney, not a collections agency. You can garnish wages up to a set amount- I believe it is 25% of the monthly wage until the amount is paid in full. The attorney has to involve the employer, who must answer the garnishment to the court, and pay into the court- each month. The court then waits for the attorney to petition for payment - monthly. Then, the attorney keeps a portion for their fee ( usually around 18-25% - my last garnishment was 25% of the paid-in amount). Yes- you can add the fee to the amount that is owed, but that is how it works in Georgia. It takes a lot of time to do this. I've done it three times...all for those that stopped paying and moved out with damage to the house. Now for the bad news: the judge determines the outcome. If the judge wakes up in a bad mood- watch out...they can dismiss the case, allow two months to be paid to you, or anything else they feel is fair. This is the part I don't like...you did everything right, the judge can see it differently. I've never heard of a landlord collecting until the end of the lease- month after month - just because a tenant breaks the lease. As for reporting to their credit...sorry to give you more bad news: you cannot report directly to the three big credit agencies to affect their credit. You can post on their credit that they owe funds - I used a service in the past to do this. It worked one time...the tenant was trying to get a mortgage, and my amount due was sitting on their credit- preventing the bank from moving forward until paid in full and removed by me. The credit agencies - want you to belong as a member. Equifax has a minimum of 1500 accounts you must report on monthly basis - leaving only the largest landlords to be able to do this. I've inquired in the past. Good luck!
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