Lease Signed But No Deposit or Rent Collected at Signing

[Tex Revere]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TX

We signed a lease with some tenants for my wife's older home. The move in date is October 1. We have not collected the deposit or the rent. One of the people on the lease has been found to be very dangerous and likely to damage our property. We have photos of a before and after of something he did. Unfortunately, we found this out after the lease was signed. At this time, we do not want to lease the property to these men. The responsible man on the lease wants to remove the other person from the lease. However, since they were married in another state, removing the other man from the lease cannot be a viable option. We have tried to be fair in this matter but they are insisting that we have to lease the property to them since we signed this.

What are our options on this ? We have not collected any money from them at all. Nor have we given them any keys. Thanks for your assistance.

 

[Gail in Georgia]

You have a legally binding contract with your tenants.

Just as you would expect them to hold up their end of the lease, they expect you to do the same.

As landlords, it was up to you to check out both their credit history AND their criminal background BEFORE you signed a legal document with them. It appears you did not do this.

Your options are to accept your tenants, "buy" you way out of the lease with them or refuse to provide them the keys and face the risk of a lawsuit over this.

Gail

 

[Tex Revere]

So even though the deposit has not been collected, the lease is already in force ? If they want to move in, what are our options for eviction if it becomes apparent that our property is intentionally being vandalized ? We have never had to deal with this type of problem before.

 

[Zigner]

So even though the deposit has not been collected, the lease is already in force ? If they want to move in, what are our options for eviction if it becomes apparent that our property is intentionally being vandalized ? We have never had to deal with this type of problem before.

You have the same options as any other landlord when dealing with a tenant that is in violation of their lease. Perhaps you should consider a professional property manager...

 

[Tex Revere]

You have the same options as any other landlord when dealing with a tenant that is in violation of their lease. Perhaps you should consider a professional property manager...

Yes we are doing that from now on. Our plan has been to offer lower rent prices compared to other similar properties and be able to get a better selection of tenants. This has worked pretty well so far until now. After this, we both decided to go this route. We will likely be able to get a higher rent to cover the management company fees since we have left a fair amount of rent money on the table to pursue a better selection. The management companies can usually charge more and they can deal with the headache of keeping it occupied.

 

[Antigone*]

So even though the deposit has not been collected, the lease is already in force ? If they want to move in, what are our options for eviction if it becomes apparent that our property is intentionally being vandalized ? We have never had to deal with this type of problem before.

Yes the lease is in force. However, you need to make sure that you receive consideration (money) prior to them taking possession of the property. You can then evict them only if they violate the lease. Once the lease is over, you can inform them of your decision not to renew their lease.

Be mindful that you are now a landlord and must follow the rules and regulations as such. I suggest you educate yourself, you are in for a bumpy ride.

 

[Tex Revere]

You have a legally binding contract with your tenants.

Just as you would expect them to hold up their end of the lease, they expect you to do the same.

As landlords, it was up to you to check out both their credit history AND their criminal background BEFORE you signed a legal document with them. It appears you did not do this.

Your options are to accept your tenants, "buy" you way out of the lease with them or refuse to provide them the keys and face the risk of a lawsuit over this.

Gail

What would be a typical Buyout amount (One month rent, xx dollars, etc) ? They are actually going to be paying more to rent our home than what they are currently paying.

 

[Antigone*]

What would be a typical Buyout amount (One month rent, xx dollars, etc) ? They are actually going to be paying more to rent our home than what they are currently paying.

Unless there is a buyout amount in the lease document, there isn't one.

 

[Searchertwin]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TX
We have tried to be fair in this matter but they are insisting that we have to lease the property to them since we signed this.
What are our options on this ? We have not collected any money from them at all. Nor have we given them any keys. Thanks for your assistance.

I believe that even if you offer money, they won’t take it. Why? Because they know that other LL would get wind of behavior earlier than it took you and they won’t chance that for a year of having a place to live.

Take pictures of every angle of each room, from top to bottom, every window sill, etc:, Make sure they see you do this. Write down every crack, tiniest hole, marks, etc, you see, even in the tiniest corner of the room and have them sign the move-in list indicating all you see. If it takes 5 pages, it takes 5 pages.

Your best bet is to every so often, have an inspection, give them notice ahead of time and take pictures. Once, you found major damage, you have your answer to get rid of them.
Do everything in a rrr letter, even the notice to inspect.

But still try to buy them out. Look at their side. They would see their cost for a temp place to stay till they find another place plus storage of things. You need to figure what this would cost them. If your rent is more than enough, offer one month rent. If not, than figure another amount.