I would advise you continue to small claims court. You never know when a individual may want to get their life on track and will need to get the judgement cleared from their records. I have had them come back years later wanting to pay me so they could buy a home or get a car loan.
Small claims court is inexpensive and very simple. Every landlord should make it a policy to not only evict bad tenants but also follow through with small claims. If they owe money and do not pay they are criminals in my book and I treat them accordingly.
To simply decide it will not pay off and therefor is not worth seeking justice is a defeatist attitude. That is a major part of the problem in our society. Criminals should never be allowed off scott free.
Rental Property Investor · Cleveland, OH · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 880 votes
8y
Most likely you'll never collect on 2nd cause or a small claims court judgement. We get the judgement for the principle of it, but never expect to collect a dime from it. Good news is you have control of your unit now and not weeks from now.
I would advise you continue to small claims court. You never know when a individual may want to get their life on track and will need to get the judgement cleared from their records. I have had them come back years later wanting to pay me so they could buy a home or get a car loan.
Small claims court is inexpensive and very simple. Every landlord should make it a policy to not only evict bad tenants but also follow through with small claims. If they owe money and do not pay they are criminals in my book and I treat them accordingly.
To simply decide it will not pay off and therefor is not worth seeking justice is a defeatist attitude. That is a major part of the problem in our society. Criminals should never be allowed off scott free.
Broker/Flipper · Austin, TX · Member since 2013 · 4k+ posts · 4k+ votes
8y
The FIRST priority is to take possession of the property and get it rented to stop the bleeding
Once the property is rented and you have an idea of the total amount of your loss. Expenses minus their deposit. Then you can pursue in small claims court or put a deficiency on their credit report
I would advise you continue to small claims court. You never know when a individual may want to get their life on track and will need to get the judgement cleared from their records. I have had them come back years later wanting to pay me so they could buy a home or get a car loan.
Small claims court is inexpensive and very simple. Every landlord should make it a policy to not only evict bad tenants but also follow through with small claims. If they owe money and do not pay they are criminals in my book and I treat them accordingly.
To simply decide it will not pay off and therefor is not worth seeking justice is a defeatist attitude. That is a major part of the problem in our society. Criminals should never be allowed off scott free.
The FIRST priority is to take possession of the property and get it rented to stop the bleeding
Once the property is rented and you have an idea of the total amount of your loss. Expenses minus their deposit. Then you can pursue in small claims court or put a deficiency on their credit report
Real Estate Broker · Cleveland Dayton Cincinnati Toledo Columbus & Akron, OH · Member since 2013 · 30k+ posts · 20k+ votes
8y
@Amy Hu 1st step secure property. If you want to pursue a claim for the water bill and incur the costs of said claim you can but your chance of collecting is probably low. For this reason many investors write it off and move on.