Utility bills

[IOSilver]

Hi, I'm in Calif.

My landlord wants me to change my utilities into his name so he can claim that he lives in this house. He gets some sort of tax break if he can prove
that he's lived in this house for 5 years.
He wants to pay the utility bills online & have me reimburse him for them when I pay him the rent.

What are the ramifications of doing this?
One problem I can see is that if I decide to move & rent another place, they will probably ask for my most recent utility bill to check my payment history.

I don't feel right doing this..
I'd like to give him a really good reason for refusing so he won't raise my rent or some such thing.

Appreciate any advice..

 

[FarmerJ]

First thing here, are you a month to month renter or on a fixed term lease? see if your month to month rental your LL only needs to give you proper notice that he is going to make the following change which would be his paying the utils and you reimbursing him. If he is attempting to claim the address he rents to you as his own to cheat on property taxes or anything else it really has no bearing on you as long as your honest with any one who inquires and have rent reciepts to prove that your renting it.( EG: city inspector stops by one day- will have city photo ID to prove it- and ask if your a renter , your free to say yes ) If your LL has a fixed term lease that doesnt permit a change in lease terms mid lease with you that has time left on it your free to decline any change and tell him your not interested but he is free to change the terms on the next lease . BUT your post has me curious , does your city require LLs to have a rental license filed and posted in visible place at the property ? ( zoning dept desk can tell you) Some cities do , Is LL planing on coming by daily to pick up his /her mail ? will you have to share a mail box or each have own ?

 

[IOSilver]

Hi, Thanks for responding.

I'm a month to month renter.
I called the City of San Jose zoning dept to find out if he is required to have a rental license filed & displayed at the property but noone seemed to know. They just kept forwarding me around until I got disconnected.
I can tell you that there is no rental license posted on this property & never has been & I've lived here for 16 years.

My LL wants me to call the utility companies & tell them I've moved & have them transfer the service into his name at my address, stating that he is the new occupant.
Then he would pay the bills online if possible & I would reimburse him for them when I pay the rent.

It sounds fishy to me & I don't want to get involved.
I think I'm going to tell him that if he wants the utilities in his name he can assume financial responsibility for them.

 

[Who's Liable?]

He is committing fraud if he does this.

Inform LL you do not feel comfortable doing this as it is fraudulent and can come back on you.

 

[FarmerJ]

Like I said, If he is attempting to claim the address he rents to you as his own to cheat on property taxes or anything else it really has no bearing on you as long as your honest with any one who inquires and have rent reciepts to prove that your renting it. , Your free to decline LLs oral request to close the elect and gas / water accounts. but then all your LL has to do is require the change via proper notice in writting to you telling you to close out the gas , elect and water bill accounts and the LL will have to put them in his /her name. Or on the other end of it your LL can raise your rent with proper notice or can simply give you proper notice to move out. Legally the only party to suffer if the LL does anything fraudulent is the LL not you! if your LL cheated on property taxes its not your problem , if LL doesnt declare your rental payments as income on state and fed tax filings its not your problem. ( see people who do things like say cheat on property taxes can be caught easier than they think since all it would take is one visit from assessors office or city /county employee and you telling them you rent the house to end the cheating and your LL could still be surprised someday by a nieghbor or someone else she/he knows dropping the dime on them too)

 

[IOSilver]

Thanks for the info & advice.

I didn't know it was possible for him to declare my rent payments as income
on his tax returns. I wonder if he does.
Per his request, I pay rent via an online bill-pay account I setup with my bank & the money gets directly deposited into his credit union account.
He uses the rent money I pay him to make monthly mortgage payments on his other home (the one he currently lives in).

Appreciate your help
Thanks very much

 

[FarmerJ]

what or how your LL uses your rent payments for is her/ his concern. State & federal tax laws treat rental property income as, income one is able to deduct certain business expenses just like someone who has any other business. ( LLs tax concerns are not yours ) The only thing that matters is if your LL requires this change in proper written notice to you or not and whether you want to stay on or not

 

[Who's Liable?]

Thanks for the info & advice.

I didn't know it was possible for him to declare my rent payments as income
on his tax returns. I wonder if he does.
Per his request, I pay rent via an online bill-pay account I setup with my bank & the money gets directly deposited into his credit union account.
He uses the rent money I pay him to make monthly mortgage payments on his other home (the one he currently lives in).

Appreciate your help
Thanks very much

The IRS has a wonderful program that allows people to "report" cheaters, they, in turn reward them with a portion of the money discovered.