Two months before my tenant‘s lease is up, he stopped paying. I filed eviction (via PM company) right before Covid-19 shutdown but he was not served by sheriff’s office. During the shutdown period, his lease expired and we didn’t execute another one. He missed two months rent on previous lease, and stayed additional 3 months without lease, without payment. As of 7/1, he moved out and gave back keys. Our eviction court is scheduled to open in mid July. What option do I have? Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts and experiences with me. I do have his one month deposit which is not even close to what he owed. How can I get him to pay me back? He does not respond to my call or texts.
Two months before my tenant‘s lease is up, he stopped paying. I filed eviction (via PM company) right before Covid-19 shutdown but he was not served by sheriff’s office. During the shutdown period, his lease expired and we didn’t execute another one. He missed two months rent on previous lease, and stayed additional 3 months without lease, without payment. As of 7/1, he moved out and gave back keys. Our eviction court is scheduled to open in mid July. What option do I have? Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts and experiences with me. I do have his one month deposit which is not even close to what he owed. How can I get him to pay me back? He does not respond to my call or texts.
It partly depends on what state you are in. You want to get a judgement against him, which is a legally binding order that says he owes you money. The judgement stays on his credit report until it is satisfied or cleared by some other means, such as bankruptcy. You can also potentially work with a collection agency, with or without a judgement to collect the money. Do not let him get away with this. It was very intentional that he didn't pay you and left before eviction courts opened. Some landlords would file for eviction, even though he left just to get it on his record...
Two months before my tenant‘s lease is up, he stopped paying. I filed eviction (via PM company) right before Covid-19 shutdown but he was not served by sheriff’s office. During the shutdown period, his lease expired and we didn’t execute another one. He missed two months rent on previous lease, and stayed additional 3 months without lease, without payment. As of 7/1, he moved out and gave back keys. Our eviction court is scheduled to open in mid July. What option do I have? Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts and experiences with me. I do have his one month deposit which is not even close to what he owed. How can I get him to pay me back? He does not respond to my call or texts.
It partly depends on what state you are in. You want to get a judgement against him, which is a legally binding order that says he owes you money. The judgement stays on his credit report until it is satisfied or cleared by some other means, such as bankruptcy. You can also potentially work with a collection agency, with or without a judgement to collect the money. Do not let him get away with this. It was very intentional that he didn't pay you and left before eviction courts opened. Some landlords would file for eviction, even though he left just to get it on his record...
Real Estate Investor · Springfield, MO · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
6y
If you know where he works/moved, try getting him served papers so you can get a money judgment in small claims court. Otherwise, turn him over to a collection agency. They can skip trace and hassle him to try to get him to pay up. I'm amazed at the number of people I find on Facebook and the details they post about their lives, btw....a little searching goes a long way.
Rental Property Investor · Member since 2020 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
6y
I'm sorry to hear that this happened to you but look at the silver lining, he is gone and didn't draw it out longer. While I agree that the likelihood of him paying is slim you never know and I would pursue a judgement just to get it on his record which may get him to pay if he is ever looking to make a major purchase. If not at least it will serve as a warning to others but you occasionally see posts pop up where people from long ago pay up so I would try based on the amount you have owed.
Thank you all for your comments! One question, will the eviction court still hear my case and if this still counts as eviction on his record? Unfortunately I don’t have his new address. He left me a voicemail before move out acknowledging he owes me rent, even though he does not return my calls right now. I just want the rent to be paid back, not necessarily damaging his credit. I thought he would call back and we can arrange payment and withdraw eviction filing.
Thank you all for your comments! One question, will the eviction court still hear my case and if this still counts as eviction on his record? Unfortunately I don’t have his new address. He left me a voicemail before move out acknowledging he owes me rent, even though he does not return my calls right now. I just want the rent to be paid back, not necessarily damaging his credit. I thought he would call back and we can arrange payment and withdraw eviction filing.
An eviction would generally no longer be appropriate. Evictions are to recover possession. You already have possession back. Small claims is where you would typically go to obtain a monetary judgment once you already have possession.