Can our landlord hold our possessions hostage?
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Can our landlord hold our possessions hostage?
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We got a month behind on rent. We came to a mutual agreement that it would be best if we moved and they could re rent the home. We were out of town. I come home and there is a Dispossessory notice on our door. I called the landlord. He said he just needed an answer and not to worry about the notice. I told him we were looking for a new home. Then my dad passess away suddenly at home. We're in a hotel then. Our stuff is still in our old house. Husband goes to our house to get some pictures of my dad. The landlords guy is boxing up our stuff. We were going to be out that weekend. Landlord tells husband don't worry about it. She'll have it put in storage and just focus on my family. A few days later husband asks to get the key to his mom's truck that is parked there. She said we could meet up and get it. She stayed busy and we had to go out of town again. We have no idea where our stuff is, she won't tell us. We can't get important papers and a truck key. She never showed us an eviction judgement, which the sherriff's office is supposed to by law. She moves our stuff without telling us. Now she says we owe her rent, moving fee, and water bill due to water pipe bursting outside when we were out of town. The bill isn't in our name. Isn't landlord supposed to cover repairs? Also, don't they need a warrant to get our stuff? We live in Georgia. Theft by conversion? She's threatening to give all our stuff to charity. It's all we have. Our clothes, baby clothes, furniture, computer, and lots of pictures. Some with my dad. What can we do??
Additional Details
ENOUGH RUDE COMMENTS. Do NOT assume you know us by this situation. This is the first time for us. We only owe $650 for a month's rent. We paid first, last, and security deposit at move in. We are out of town often with our business. That is why we agreed to move. Stayed in hotel because of water situation. Have 9 month old baby. Then my dad passed away and we had to focus more on that than us. Starting our business costs a lot of money and that is why we got behind. We were in constant communication with landlord. She told us not to worry and she would have our stuff put in storage and we pay bill. Now she's changed the agreement. We had no reason to not trust her. We are both Christians and were on good terms.
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clubbama
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Get a court order to get your stuff. Did you pay a deposit? File with the court. If she is in the wrong she will have to pay the court fees on top of give all you things back. She can't keep anything unless she filed a lien against it. And had you served with eviction notices. |
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Parnassus
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I think you are leaving the seminal fact out of your long message: HOW MUCH BACK RENT DO YOU OWE, AND HAVE YOU MADE ARRANGEMENTS TO PAY IT?
My guess is that you left this out for a simple reason: You already know the answer to your question.
Of course your landlord can exercise a lien on your stuff if you don't pay the rent. All this other crapola in your question will sell in court about as well as it does with me--it is a boatload of excuses. Pay the rent and get your stuff. It is that simple. And yes, it is fair. |
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Compressed Fart Tycoon
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Oh, that's right, you don't have to pay your bills if you are a good Christian.
I hate the way you guys hide behind that.
Pay $650, get your stuff. It is that simple. |
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lillyflowergarden
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Allowing your landlord to pack and move your stuff speaks volume about you.How do you pay for a motel room and can't pay rent? How do you have money to go out of town and can't pay rent? Call and ask about your rights.I will be willing to bet this is not the first time. |
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Baby #1 on 12/10/08
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If you had an agreement to move out, then an eviction notice isn't necessary, as you've chosen to leave. Depending on how long you were gone, an agreement to leave and then you actually leaving would lead a reasonable person to assume that you abandoned your property. You can't leave your property in an apartment while you're looking for a new place and living in a hotel.
A landlord can't get rid of a tenant's personal property, however they can have the property removed and stored so that they can make it available for a new tenant. Moving and storage fees would fall on the owner of the property. You also owe her rent for the time that you lived there and didn't pay, as well as rent for the time your possessions were there and you weren't.
As for the water bill. If the bill is for excessive water usage due the broken pipe, you owe it as you didn't turn the water valve off. Whether or not you were out of town is irrelevant. If it's for the repair of the pipe, it would be on the landlord unless you were responsible for taking precautionary measures (eg keeping the heat on, running the water once a day) to keep it from happening and did not do them.
What you can do is, take her to court for your things. You can bet she'll have a counter suit for the rent, etc. |
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