Small Claims Court for Landlord Tenant Disputes
Too few landlords use small claims court to collect rent or
damages owed by tenants. Small claims court is a good and perfectly useful way to
collect on past due rent, damages to your property caused by renters and
generally any money dispute between a landlord and a tenant. Often, an owner can avoid this altogether with proper tenant screening and credit checks.
It is also useful in resolving any disputes you may have
with contractors or vendors. Before hiring be sure to have a copy of the liability and workmens compensation insurance policys verified. There are limitations to small claims court.
Although you do not need a lawyer there are limits to the dollar amount of the
claim.
Tenant Landlord
Disputes
What you Need
Here is where good
documentation really pays off.
- Provide
a good contract or lease to prove your complaint is valid and was
contractually agreed upon between yourself and the tenant.
- Bring any written communications such as letter or emails to document your case. Many property management companies never delete any tenant or contractor emails.
- It's
always a good idea to provide a tenant with a move in inspection form
where the tenant can document any damages that existed at the move in.
- Digital photos provide excellent documentation. Inexpensive digital cameras make a good investment and can help a judge visualize the problem.
- A move
out inspection done by yourself or a staff member to document any damages
to the unit before and after the tenant has moved
and digital photos of any damages that was not there at the
move in inspection.
How Does it Work?
-
No Attorney: This is a good
solution for many small dollar disputes because you do not need an
attorney.
-
Good Documentation: Bring all
documentation and supporting evidence such as copies of Lease's and addendums/emails/correspondence/photo's/receipts. If your documentation is
good and you have good digital photos of the property before and after the
move in, you should be in good shape.
-
Make Your Case: Make your case
before a judge. Have copies of all records and do your homework. Spend a
little time on the sequence of events and put your documents in that
order. Relax and explain to the judge why you feel you are right.
-
The Judgment: Once a decision has
been made by the court there is generally an appeal period. If no appeal is
made by the other party and the allotted appeal time has passed you can
now try to collect the judgment from the tenant.
-
Getting Paid: Once a judgment has
been made in your favor, get a copy of the judgment and send it to the
tenant and set a required time period for payment. You may require payment
if full or you may allow an installment schedule. If the tenant does not
pay as agreed then you must record the judgment
-
Record It: This is a procedure
which places the judgment in the public record and will it vary from state
to state. You should record the judgment for all to see. It's not to be
spiteful, but the severity of having an outstanding lien against the
tenant and documentation with credit reporting agencies is the leverage
that will get you your money.
-
Debt Collection: An industry industry whose only function is to collect bad debt. They often operate by
offering to collect for a percentage of the debt owed. Generally, there is no fee if the debt is noncollectable.
Note: Some tenant screening companies maintain "bad tenant" data bases. We dont know how effective these are but having the conversation with a problem tenant cant hurt.
States Limits to
Small Claims
Each state will limit the amount of money claims that can be
brought before a small claims court. We understand the maximum allowable amount
in Kentucky is $1,500 while Alaska
allows the largest claim limits with $10,000.
If you have good documentation and are relaxed with a little
work collecting money owed to you will be successful. Most people do not want a
bad reputation and only need to see you are serious and will go the distance.
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