landlord suing prev. tenant for inability to re-rent

[anven]

Pennsylvania.

A landlord filed a countersuit to tenant's suit for security deposit. The suit is for the ammount of entire one year lease in which landlord claims that previous tenants kept the premises in "unsightly" conditions preventing the landlord to secure tenants.

Few questions I have - can a motion to dismiss be filed as a result of interrogatories? (i.e. if plaintiff fails to present evidence in support of the claim). and in general - when can a motion to dismiss be filed.

Also - since the suit is against 10 people - 4 residents, and their parents as co-signers, can a motion be filed to drop the parents out of the lawsuit since they did not live on premises. (In the suit, landlord is not claiming a breach of lease, rather liability of tenants for lost income).

And finally, can an objection be filed to a praecipe for default judgment? Even though defendants filed an answer, plaintiff claims that one of the 10 defendants failed to file an appearance - and requests default judgment against him.

Thank you for your help, but please no "hire a lawyer" advice since we cant afford one anyway.

 

[maggyva]

The place to find all the answers to your questions is in the CONTRACT! So read the lease agreement and see what it says about the "Exit Inspection"? What does it say about the Deposit? How many days does the landlord have in which to return the Deposit?

However, the most important question to answer is: Did the landlord return ANY of the Deposit? If he did you have nothing to worry about.

Normally, upon termination of a lease agreement, a landlord is responsible for notifying the tenant(s) of the date and time the premises will be inspected, and the tenant is responsible for letting the landlord know if they will attend the inspection. If the tenant does not notify the landlord, the landlord has the right to inspect the premises without the tenant in attendance.

However, once the inspection is complete, the landlord has a certain amount of days (normally 21-30) in which to return the deposit, minus any damages, along with a list of each damage and the cost of repair. If the landlord finds the deposit is not enough to cover the damages, then the landlord sends the tenant(s) the list of damages and costs to repair, subtracts the deposit amount, and shows an AMOUNT DUE. If the landlord did not do this, then he's out of luck and the tenants have nothing to worry about, because a judge is going to base his decision on what the Contract says, not the fact that the landlord couldn't rent the premises because it was too dirty (or whatever). All lease agreements allow for "normal wear and tear."

BUT, if the landlord returned a portion of the Deposit and provided an explanation for keeping the remainder, then he's still out of luck because
he has no valid claim for not being able to rent the premises, because if the premises were so damaged that he couldn't rent it, then why didn't he keep ALL of the deposit and bill you for any damages OVER the deposit amount?

Pennsylvania.

A landlord filed a countersuit to tenant's suit for security deposit. The suit is for the ammount of entire one year lease in which landlord claims that previous tenants kept the premises in "unsightly" conditions preventing the landlord to secure tenants.

Few questions I have - can a motion to dismiss be filed as a result of interrogatories? (i.e. if plaintiff fails to present evidence in support of the claim). and in general - when can a motion to dismiss be filed.

- since the suit is against 10 people - 4 residents, and their parents as co-signers, can a motion be filed to drop the parents out of the lawsuit since they did not live on premises. (In the suit, landlord is not claiming a breach of lease, rather liability of tenants for lost income). NO

And finally, can an objection be filed to a praecipe for default judgment? Even though defendants filed an answer, plaintiff claims that one of the 10 defendants failed to file an appearance - and requests default judgment against him.

Thank you for your help, but please no "hire a lawyer" advice since we cant afford one anyway.

 

[justalayman]

If you moved out, why would you be responsible for the condition of the house for any period, let alone a full year.?

A landlord filed a countersuit to tenant's suit for security deposit. The suit is for the ammount of entire one year lease in which landlord claims that previous tenants kept the premises in "unsightly" conditions preventing the landlord to secure tenants.

or are we misunderstanding your situation and questions.

 

[anven]

suing for inability to rent

Landlord is simply suing for inability to rent. Its a frivolous lawsuit,but since we can not afford a lawyer - we're getting overwhelmed with paperwork.

Are there any precedents of a landlord suing for inability to rent??

Also - he did not return any of the deposit, and asked for more money on top of it, charging for painting of entire place even though it was not painted when we moved in, and we have documented that at move-in inspection.

unfortunately, this may never even get to a trial, since the landlord also happens to be a vice president of Accuweather, and has a team of lawyers working on his side for free - bombarding us with preliminary objections and motions.

Thank you for any advice