What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MISSOURI
Hi there. On October 14th, we got a message from our landlord, claiming he received only $350 of our $650 rent. We use money orders. My fiance had purchased one for $300 and another for $25, since they don't do any over $300 at Quick Trip. We have until the 4th before it is considered late. He got his around the 29th-30th of September, and on the 1st, handed them over to me to fill out, along with the envelope. On the 1st, I signed off on all of them, filled out the envelope and sent him with cash to Hy-Vee to get my $325 money order and mail them all off, in the same package. We always do it this way, and I have done it like this for the ten years I have lived on my own, without issue. On the 14th, I got a message on our answering machine claiming that on the 2nd, he had received only half of our rent. I called him back and left a message, explaining that there should have been multiple money orders, and asking which institutions' money orders he had actually gotten. The next day, he left us a message accusing me of "arguing," never answered the question and informed us that he had only gotten one money order, made out for $350, and that we were now on the line for a $20/day late fee. We never sent a money order made out for that amount, and he dodged our question. My fiance called him back, and the landlord answered. My fiance is a calm and friendly guy, not prone to being hostile or anything like that. He explained our confusion, and that we have receipts for the money order that seems to be in question (the $300 one). He brusquely said, verbatim, "I don't need receipts, I need my goddamn money, and I'm in a meeting." Then he hung up.
My mother is lending us $300 for now until we can get the money order refunded; however we are finding this whole situation suspicious. We have contacted Hy-Vee for surveillance footage, since that is where the money orders all went into the mail. They called back confirming my fiance purchasing the final money order and putting it in the mail, with nothing left behind or dropped. We are concerned about these supposed late fees, since we have done our part. Do we have enough proof to stand ground in court to avoid these fees? There are other shady dealings our landlord has done as well, including shutting off our water for a mistake made on part of a particular utility company, which as I understand, is a violation of Missouri law. Thank you for your time.
Hi there. On October 14th, we got a message from our landlord, claiming he received only $350 of our $650 rent. We use money orders. My fiance had purchased one for $300 and another for $25, since they don't do any over $300 at Quick Trip. We have until the 4th before it is considered late. He got his around the 29th-30th of September, and on the 1st, handed them over to me to fill out, along with the envelope. On the 1st, I signed off on all of them, filled out the envelope and sent him with cash to Hy-Vee to get my $325 money order and mail them all off, in the same package. We always do it this way, and I have done it like this for the ten years I have lived on my own, without issue. On the 14th, I got a message on our answering machine claiming that on the 2nd, he had received only half of our rent. I called him back and left a message, explaining that there should have been multiple money orders, and asking which institutions' money orders he had actually gotten. The next day, he left us a message accusing me of "arguing," never answered the question and informed us that he had only gotten one money order, made out for $350, and that we were now on the line for a $20/day late fee. We never sent a money order made out for that amount, and he dodged our question. My fiance called him back, and the landlord answered. My fiance is a calm and friendly guy, not prone to being hostile or anything like that. He explained our confusion, and that we have receipts for the money order that seems to be in question (the $300 one). He brusquely said, verbatim, "I don't need receipts, I need my goddamn money, and I'm in a meeting." Then he hung up.
My mother is lending us $300 for now until we can get the money order refunded; however we are finding this whole situation suspicious. We have contacted Hy-Vee for surveillance footage, since that is where the money orders all went into the mail. They called back confirming my fiance purchasing the final money order and putting it in the mail, with nothing left behind or dropped. We are concerned about these supposed late fees, since we have done our part. Do we have enough proof to stand ground in court to avoid these fees? There are other shady dealings our landlord has done as well, including shutting off our water for a mistake made on part of a particular utility company, which as I understand, is a violation of Missouri law. Thank you for your time.