I'm going to be a landlord for the first time, any advice?

[Rigamarole]

@lindsaybluth

Did you end up getting your original deposit back or double? I wouldn’t pursue it just for the original (it’s 650) but because it’s double, I figured why not. Also, if I don’t get a penny, I have nothing to be sorry for - it’s about 150 bucks below market rate per month because he’s an idiot.

Just the original deposit (which was ~$1500). But I had a judgement in hand for the deposit + my court costs + some illegally charged utilities that I had paid to her + a partial punitive award (not the full 2x amount but a couple hundred bucks more). So I think the final judgement was ~$2400. The thing is, the court doesn’t collect for you, that’s something you have to do on your own. I won’t get into all of it here but basically she was very shifty and claimed she was moving out of state which is why I settled for less than what she legally owed me.

But what’s important is this: that 2x statute is just the maximum allowed. It’s quite naive to think if your landlord sends you your deposit back in full, 31 days after moving that you’re going to be able to waltz into court and double up. Court is about making injured parties whole, not giving them a payday. The only reason the judge in my case was willing to award any punitive damages at all was because of the aforementioned utilities scandal, which really upset him since she pretty much had no respect for the rule of law whatsoever.

If you’re going to sue you need to at a minimum pay a filing fee, a process server, and take time off of work to go down to the courthouse and argue the case. Possibly multiple trips if there are appeals etc. And then if you win (and you won’t win punitive damages unless the situation is really bad), you still have to collect which entails paying more fees and doing some detective work so that the sheriff can levy his bank account, garnish his wages (if he has any), or whatever you need to do. And you also need to be very patient, since all of this takes a while.

[lindsaybluth]

@Noelq

Great suggestions. The most valuable ones are:

1. Rent is $550 if paid after the 3rd, $500 if paid before. This simple step got us to 95% of paid rents by the 3rd. Its invaluable, and definitely do it.

In a lot of places you’re not allowed to charge a late fee or the late fee is very small. Every single lease I’ve ever seen or signed in Western PA & St. Louis has the “pay X by Y date or pay X+decent sum by Y + 3 days date”.

@Noelq

2. Take the credit check fee out of their first month’s rent. The $20 it costs goes a LONG way to weeding out bad tenants, and not charging them for it help. We found that first, by just SAYING you’d be doing a credit check suddenly gets a whole lot of information they “forgot” to tell you - like their four evictions, their DUI’s, their nine divorces… Secondly, give them a copy of their credit report when they move in. .

Oh yeah, in addition to a credit check, please run a criminal background check. People can have stellar credit and show up in nice clothes and still have a sordid past that you may want nothing to do with.

[lindsaybluth]

@Rigamarole

If you’re going to sue you need to at a minimum pay a filing fee, a process server, and take time off of work to go down to the courthouse and argue the case. Possibly multiple trips if there are appeals etc. And then if you win (and you won’t win punitive damages unless the situation is really bad), you still have to collect which entails paying more fees and doing some detective work so that the sheriff can levy his bank account, garnish his wages (if he has any), or whatever you need to do. And you also need to be very patient, since all of this takes a while.

Ugh. If that’s the case here, I won’t pursue it. I’ve saved…28 months x 150 = $4200 by renting from him and dealing with his shit. I’d price my pain and suffering at only 1k, so I’m entirely comfortable just walking away.