Landlord suing me for damages!!

[WoundedKnee]

What is the name of your state? Alabama

I recently leased a house with the option to buy. The lease was for 3 months. After 2 months in the house I decided because of all the work needed that it would be both a financial and physical drain and gave 30 days otice to the owner that I would be moving. When I moved into the house there were curtains and an old bedspread, some old rusty lawn furniture and such. When I ask what I should do with the items the owner told me that I could either keep them or dispose of them. I have a witness to this conversation. I chose to dispose of these items. There were several problems with the house that had not be disclosed to me at the time we signed the option. I had been assued that all was in working order and if not all I had to do was contact the owner. The furnace needed replacing, the stove and dishwasher were not usable. The house had a hot tub that I couldn't get to work and several rooms had to be repainted because of mold and mildew. I went to great expense trying to get this house in a condition that was livable. It was one problem after another and I couldn't ger the owner to respond to any verbal or written requests for assistance.

The owner is now taking me to small claims court. She is asking for the cost of all curtains, the bedspread, the rusty lawn furniture and an assortment of stuff. In my mind it's ludicrous. I spent nearly $2500 during the 3 months I was in this house and when I walked away from it it was in far better shape than it was when I moved in.

I'll admit though that I am intimidated by this. Is it possible that this woman could win her small claims suit against me? Also, would it be possible for me to counter-sue for the expenses I incurred while living in the house? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

 

[michael parks]

You are in Alabameee Redneck country so here is the scam.....

Find a stooge, like you who has more money then brains, offer an option to buy, let the stooge spend their money on the landlords property, leave old rusty damaged furiture behind, then sue the tenant when they dont buy the overpriced piece of crap house and for the supposed great almost new stuff you illegally tossed into the garbage.

See how easy it is to scam a southener!

 

[annefan1000]

Mention to your Landlord that YOU intend to file Civil Action against HER for the mold that you claim is in the dwelling. (Mold is a very big issue in Real Estate right now.) Assuming you have no documentation of this (i.e. photographs) it would still be a hoot to see your threat make her run with her tail between her legs!!!

 

[WoundedKnee]

annefan, actually I do have photos of the mold and sincerely appreciate you pointing out the importance of it to me. I will take your advice and notify the owner's attorney of my intentions.

micheal....what can I say....hmmmm, I'm not sure I would charactorize myself as a stooge but if calling me one helps you feel good then I'll own it....just for you. Now, I know that where you come from more than likely folks like myself are few and far between but there are still a few of us out here. We aren't making our way very well, being left to deal with the likes of folks who do their best to defraud can be quite the burdon. You see micheal, I like to think of myself as a person with character. Someone who still has faith in human kind and wishes to hold onto her beliefs that until proven otherwise people can be trusted, their actions actually do back up their agreements with you.

Now I will admit to being raised on grits and red-eye gravy but I did manage to get myself educated. I have lived not only in Alabama but also England and Germany. I've spent many hours touring Holland, Austria, Russia, France, Denmark, Switzerland and Spain. I was able to shake most of that red clay dirt from Bama off myself and at times do feel quite wise about life.

I've met people like you in every area of the world I have visited and lived. Small people with a hair up their ass who can only feel large and good about their own lives when they swipe out and insult others. Being able to tell from such a few short words the kind of person you are and the kind of life you live I would like to thank you for my new title. I'd rather be called stooge any day, than to have to live my life out walking around in your skin.

Now, if you will pardon me....I think I'll fix myself a bourbon and branch, relax in the front porch swing and watch all the little overall clad children run around barefoot.

 

[michael parks]

Well this will teach you a very valuable lesson..

Its NOT your property, so why did you spend $2500 on it?

Thats is whats at issue....are you owed some of that back, probably not, but you could use that against the landlord to get this suit dismissed.

Most people spend maybe $100 200 fixing up a place but $2500....thats utterly foolish....

And since you know the landlord was lazy, and expected you to buy the property you might just find out that YOU cannot hold the landlord responsible for the mold, since YOU entered into a option to buy.

 

[Aphex]

WoundedKnee, regarding your reply to Michael Parks, I say bravo!
Enjoy your bourbon................

 

[michael parks]

aphex (twins)

The moral of this story is:

a fool and his money are soon departed.

And with Nothing in writing to verify things were working, and the landlord said he could dispose of these items then this applies:

A verbal agreement is worth the paper its printed on.

 

[CaliCat]

Never do those lease-to-buy things. They're all scams. The rules can be so ambiguous.

 

[annefan1000]

Lease purchases can be just as good as a standard purchase. The stickler is to make sure that you enter an Agreement of Sale at the time of the lease signing (generally if you don't sign a standard Agreement of Sale, you sign a "Right of First Refusal").
Document EVERYTHING in the written agreement, so there is no room to turn the Lesee/Lessor from Mr. Hyde into Dr. Jeckle.

As far as the mold issue is concerned, it is a very hot topic in Real Estate right now. No matter what the tenant has done or failed to do, mold should be classified as a totally seperate entity from other disputes, if the need arises in your situation to use it.

I am not an attorney, I work in Real Estate.

Woundedknee, I would not notify the OWNER'S attorney of anything. I would collect my photographs and any documentation regarding the mold and file a CIVIL ACTION against the owner. Let the OWNER notify his own attorney. You must decide what grounds and remediation you are suing for. In this situation, due to the occurence of mold, did you experience any problems that affected you directly as a result of this mold exposure? (have to replace clothing, furniture, etc.) and was the result of the mold exposure due to the owner's negligence? (example: leaking roof and no responses to your complaints). Good luck to you.

 

[michael parks]

annefan:

If a lease purchase is as good as a purchase then wouldnt it hold that the new tenant is responsible for the clean up of the mold?

The landlord didnt casue the mold, and by agreeing to potentially purchase the home, the landlord has temporailly transferred his ownership to the woundedknee ....so woundedknee is responsible for ALL repairs, and mold is a repair..

 

[annefan1000]

I didn't say a lease purchase was as good as a standard purchase, it is always far more advantageous for the tenant/purchaser to execute the sale agreement as soon as possible for many reasons. However, sometimes it is not feasible for the tenant to purchase at the present time, for whatever reason, and lease purchasing can be the avenue for a tenant to obtain his/her "piece of the american dream". The road to that american dream can be smooth or it can be a nightmare. That's why I always suggest everything to be spelled out in written form and documented. I am, in no way, giving out legal advise. I am just giving a few pointers from my experiences here in real estate.

The mold issue is a relatively new one to the industry, but I will try to give you my views:

There are certain obligations that, due to the standard lease agreement, (or to an agreement written on the back of a diner napkin for that matter!) that the Landlord has an obligation to keep the unit in habitable condition. This would include the MAINTENANCE of ceilings, roof, floors, walls, steps, porches, windows and doors. Some leases even stipulate that the Landlord will agree to keeping air conditioning, security, sanitary, heating, drainage, electrical, water heating, ventilation and plumbing units in safe and working order. Now, bear in mind here, that I am giving conditions as required by PENNSYLVANIA law. Leases vary from state to state, though I believe most of them are quite similar.

I should have clarified myself in the previous posting of one thing regarding the mold issue. My comment was not intended to cause the tenant reader to run to his nearest Magisterial District court and file suit against his landlord because he neglected to clean his shower and hence, has mold growing in the ceramic tile grout. By any estimate of the average Joe, this scenario would obviously place the responsibility on the tenant, due to his lack of hygeine. However, if there was a severe storm that blew roof shingles off the home, and the roof was not repaired after documented complaints to the landlord, then we are looking at an entirely different bowl of beans. Now we are looking at Landlord negligence. In this situation, the Landlord is the responsible party for the mold growth. Sort of a no-brainer, huh.

In real estate, there is only one law regarding possession. You either own it or you don't. I can safely assume that in every state in the Union, a person cannot own a property until they are placed on the Title and Deed. No matter what train you're taking to get there, the Landlord remains the owner of the property until the transfer takes place at settlement. So, my response is...the Landlord is responsible for the habitable condition of his property until the time the real property is transferred, by way of agreement of sale and settlement. It really doesn't matter what else you (as a Landlord) might want to put into an addendum to the lease. Again, at least this is the way it goes in PENNSYLVANIA.

PS - At the point of mold growth being visibile, the Landlord had better believe it won't call to just be "repaired"...mold on ceilings and walls begins as water marks, months and sometimes years before the mold appears. Once the mold appears visible to the naked eye, I'd wager my home's equity that you've got a STRUCTURAL problem.

Ciao