Landlord refusing rent- please help

[AngieP]

What is the name of your state? Oklahoma

My landlord just gave me a 5 day pay or quit notice, which I think is unfair as I have tried to pay. Here's the story (I'll try to make it brief)...

My landlord refuses to give receipts for rent. So I usually pay by money order to protect myself (she prefers cash). Last month she claims to not have received it, but then admitted she did. So this month, in an effort to protect myself further, I sent my rent via registered mail so she would have to sign for it (I didn't want her saying she hadn't received it again).

This made her angy. She said I was making this hard on her, and she would make it hard on me. She now refuses to sign for the letter, or call for redelivery.

My question is, can she refuse my rent and then evict me for non-payment? I just want to pay my rent and protect myself.What is the name of your state?

 

[GatorLaw]

Does your lease specify how payments are to be made?

 

[AngieP]

Does your lease specify how payments are to be made?

No, only that rent is to be paid on or before the 1st of the month. The lease is very small, and doesn'r go into much detail about anything.

 

[Cvillecpm]

WRONG MOVE on your part...you could have:

1) hand delivered it to her with a pre-prepared receipt for her to sign OR a witness to sign that she got the rent;

2) sent it to her USPS DELIVERY CONFIRMATION that you can track online and that she does not have to sign for;

3) ask for ability to deposit it directly to her bank account.

REISSUE the check for the rent and wait for your original check to come back via USPS OR stop payment on it....NEVER PAY BY POSTAL OR RETAIL MONEY ORDER.

 

[Zigner]

WRONG MOVE on your part...you could have:

1) hand delivered it to her with a pre-prepared receipt for her to sign OR a witness to sign that she got the rent;

2) sent it to her USPS DELIVERY CONFIRMATION that you can track online and that she does not have to sign for;

3) ask for ability to deposit it directly to her bank account.

REISSUE the check for the rent and wait for your original check to come back via USPS OR stop payment on it....NEVER PAY BY POSTAL OR RETAIL MONEY ORDER.

Actually, I feel OP did a good thing. When the letter comes back unclaimed from the post office, DO NOT open it. You will need it for evidence if she decides to try to evict you. Even if you end up paying by another method, you should still keep the unopened envelope as evidence of your good-faith efforts to pay your rent.

 

[AngieP]

Actually, I feel OP did a good thing. When the letter comes back unclaimed from the post office, DO NOT open it. You will need it for evidence if she decides to try to evict you. Even if you end up paying by another method, you should still keep the unopened envelope as evidence of your good-faith efforts to pay your rent.

Do you think she could successfully evict me because of this? And thank you, I really was trying to do the right thing (whether I succeeded or not).

 

[xylene]

WRONG MOVE on your part...you could have:

1) hand delivered it to her with a pre-prepared receipt for her to sign OR a witness to sign that she got the rent;

Pre-preprepared reciept, not a bad idea, but unless that witness is a freakin notary this is gonna have like negligible force or any impact to avoid the looming problem, esp since the LL is clearly heading for a confrontation...

2) sent it to her USPS DELIVERY CONFIRMATION that you can track online and that she does not have to sign for;

You been a property manager for 40 yeas but you don't even know that tracking a parcel/letter is NOT even close to proof of receipt? Delivery confirmation is a tool for the senders convience, not a legal proof of delivery as certified mail is.

3) ask for ability to deposit it directly to her bank account.

The landlord is already demanding cash payment... and not wanting to give receipts so that alone makes this piece of advice a little tid-bit of garbage. Not to mention the fact that the lease is mute on how rent must / should be paid...

REISSUE the check for the rent and wait for your original check to come back via USPS OR stop payment on it....NEVER PAY BY POSTAL OR RETAIL MONEY ORDER.

I suppose in your world-view a checking account is given. Well unless her lease says so she can pay however she wants. A money order is traceable, and cheap, and a damned effective way to pay rent.

You are a moron. Come up with another genius idea, like your veiled suggestion to a Landlord to use the checking info from copies of checks to make a direct withdrawl on a nonpaying tenant... basically I don't need to know anything to know that you don't know squat.

 

[Cvillecpm]

Yes - the registered letter won't be back in your hands in time to stop an eviction...you need to reissue the check PROPERLY. You have NOTHING to prove what was in the registered envelope so your rent is not paid because your landlord does not HAVE IT....your attempts won't get you anywhere before a judge.

Your landlord is "old world" and may or may not be reporting your rent as income. Since she won't issue a receipt you need to cover yourself by providing a personal check that you can track online. If you don't have a bank account, have a friend or family member issue the check on your behalf.

 

[Zigner]

Do you think she could successfully evict me because of this? And thank you, I really was trying to do the right thing (whether I succeeded or not).

I don't think you could be evicted over this. LL can TRY to evict you, and you will have to defend yourself. If LL says you didn't pay your rent, you would then present the unopened mail. Now the ball is back in LL's court to defend HER actions.

Caveat: No one can predict what would ACTUALLY happen in front of a judge...these are all things you would have to weigh when you choose how to proceed.

 

[msiron]

She could not do these 3 suggestions because the landlord wants cash, does not want to give out receipts, and in that case will not sign for anything. All very suspicious.

Old world my ass, the landlord is trying to hide money from the taxman... oh yea, the tax man.

 

[AngieP]

I don't think you could be evicted over this. LL can TRY to evict you, and you will have to defend yourself. If LL says you didn't pay your rent, you would then present the unopened mail. Now the ball is back in LL's court to defend HER actions.

Caveat: No one can predict what would ACTUALLY happen in front of a judge...these are all things you would have to weigh when you choose how to proceed.

I guess I'll proceed the way I am now. Since she's quite mad at me now, I'm a little worried about trying to pay another way. Thank you

 

[Cvillecpm]

Pay cash with a witness with you who will sign a the receipt that they saw you give her the cash.

YES - she can be evicted for the owner not receiving the rent because she placed the delivery of that rent in the hands of the USPS rather than delivering it as the owner instructed...

We are mixing apples and oranges - the rent has not been paid because it was not delivered as the owner instructed and the rent is not in the owner's possession AND OP wants evidence of payment.....which is another issue.

 

[BL]

Pay cash with a witness with you who will sign a the receipt that they saw you give her the cash.

YES - she can be evicted for the owner not receiving the rent because she placed the delivery of that rent in the hands of the USPS rather than delivering it as the owner instructed...
We are mixing apples and oranges - the rent has not been paid because it was not delivered as the owner instructed and the rent is not in the owner's possession AND OP wants evidence of payment.....which is another issue.

Be for real !

Would you hand over a substantial , or any payment for that matter " IN CASH " w/o some sorta proof you paid it ?

To state the only way the Landlord will accept it w/o a receipt , and that it's another " issue " of the tenants to have evidence is ridiculous .

If the LL refuses it , and if you ever end up in court , let the LL try to explain why she insist on cash payments w/o issuing a receipt and refused it any other way .

 

[Zigner]

Pay cash with a witness with you who will sign a the receipt that they saw you give her the cash.

Hey, Cvillecpm - I've got a guy who will sign a notarized statement saying I personally handed you $1,000 as a loan you refused to give a receipt or sign a note saying it was a loan. You insisted that, even though it was a loan, we were buddies so we didn't need any paperwork. Heck, give me a day and I can probably get 5 more people to sign notarized statements.
That's not "proof"

YES - she can be evicted for the owner not receiving the rent because she placed the delivery of that rent in the hands of the USPS rather than delivering it as the owner instructed...

The USPS will give a statement that the addressee refused to pick up their certified RRR mail, and will return the mail to the sender. When the sender (our OP) hands the unopened mail to the judge, along with said statement, it will be proof that the OP DID pay rent.

We are mixing apples and oranges - the rent has not been paid because it was not delivered as the owner instructed and the rent is not in the owner's possession AND OP wants evidence of payment.....which is another issue.

OP says the lease is silent on the method of payment...just that it has to be paid. You are really stretching it on this one...