Wha to do if my old rental agency is trying to charge me for alleged damages to a house that we did not do?
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Wha to do if my old rental agency is trying to charge me for alleged damages to a house that we did not do?
My old rental agency from college is trying to charge over $4000 in damages to a house that my roommates and I allegedly did. The house was in poor condition when we moved in. The rental agency has since sent the money to collections and it is affecting my credit score. We are trying to stand our ground and not pay for these alleged damages that they’re accusing us of. What are my options? We did not to a walk-through upon entering /existing the lease.
Asked on November 16, 2011 under Real Estate Law, Oregon
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
Legally, if you and your roomates did the damage, you'd need to pay. And conversely, if you did not specifically cause the damage, but it was just due to cummulative wear and tear, you'd not be liable.
(Note that "you" includes your guests--so if you have party guests, friends, or visitors who caused damage you are liable.)
The issue then is factual--did you cause the damage or not? Can the landlord prove the damage was done by you? Etc. Without hard evidence, like photographs, or inspection reports signed by you and the landlord, it will come down to testimony--yours, versus the rental agency's.
For more than $4,000, you should hire an attorney. The lawyer can contest the charge and also try to negotiate to some mutually acceptable settlement. You should be prepared that you will probably have to pay something to clear this up, unless you have good evidence on your side--otherwise, if this went to trial, the rental agency could likely prove at least some of the damage. Therefore, you may wish to consider what settlement you would consider acceptable, and try to reach that number.
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