Welcome to the Landlord School of Hard Knocks. Been there. Expensive lesson, but don’t give up. Even if you did everything right, a Professional Tenant knows how make $ off a new landlord. And CA is making that easier for them with AB1482.

Might be too late for “cash for keys”. What do other Piggs think?

Wondering if your tenant has gone to the tenant lawyer in town? FWIW, I stayed away from the property once the tenant accusations started, to avoid retaliation claims.

It depends on the type of tenants your new property draws. After bringing in my own tenant once, I eventually hired a new property manager as “insurance” and a buffer against any bad tenants going forward. (as the previous PM’s wife later told me, “I had a bad feeling about those tenants” but leased it to them anyway. I found out later that that PM allowed bankruptcies if everything else–deposit, income, job longevity–was A’OK.).

If I were you, I’d go directly to one of the big landlord(only) law firms in town, listed at the Southern Calif. Rental Housing Assoc (formerly SD County Apt. Assoc). The big firms do this stuff all day long. I had a bad experience with a supposed landlord-only smaller firm. Waste of money.

You didn’t elaborate on the purchase contract/leasing of vacated side, but something about that transaction/timing seems odd.

I think you’re going down the right path to get an individual opinion from the experts. But what do I know?

I don’t know, Econ prof. Poor people don’t have to lie, cheat, not pay rent and be drug addicts.

I might give you that liberal politicians “protect” people too much. Liberals have passed laws that are abused such as laws concerning emotional support animals. People now abuse the law to bring unauthorized pets without disclosing them first. But people who do that have no integrity. It is the law or the people of abuse it? I think that in America, we have a trashy, low-life culture among a large percentage of the population. Blame whichever party you wish.

I think the structure of our society causes people a lot of stress. Then they become whackjobs who don’t pay rent.

[quote=42nate1]Tenant has agreed to move out tomorrow, leave the keys in the kitchen & text me when they vacate.
I told them if they leave, they do not owe any rent for January & I will cancel the eviction process. This is a great outcome!

“IF” (big if) they leave Sunday night, will change the locks and assess the damage & work required to rehabilitate to get it ready to rent again. Coordinating with my repair guy & a cleaning service.

Fingers crossed that I dodged an expensive bullet.[/quote]

good luck to you. hope it works out let us know when it does.

[quote=FlyerInHi]I don’t know, Econ prof. Poor people don’t have to lie, cheat, not pay rent and be drug addicts.

I might give you that liberal politicians “protect” people too much. Liberals have passed laws that are abused such as laws concerning emotional support animals. People now abuse the law to bring unauthorized pets without disclosing them first. But people who do that have no integrity. It is the law or the people of abuse it? I think that in America, we have a trashy, low-life culture among a large percentage of the population. Blame whichever party you wish.

I think the structure of our society causes people a lot of stress. Then they become whackjobs who don’t pay rent.[/quote]
FlyerInHi: You are missing my point. Of course there are lowlifes among the applicants landlords get for advertised vacancies. But long ago, before politicians passed all the pro-tenant, anti-evil landlord laws, we could take a chance on a questionable applicant, because evicting them was easier and cheaper. Now landlords must raise deposits and rents and be more picky thanks to the new laws and tenant “protections”. Not all poor people are lowlifes, and some can get their life together if given a chance. But CA politicians and their anti-landlord laws have managed to hurt their chances, plus, incidentally, raised rents and deposits for all tenants, good and bad.

[quote=spdrun]FlyerInHI:
(1) Why should you help other landlords? They’re the competition.
(2) Wouldn’t an eviction proceeding where the tenant is no longer there be laughed out of court?[/quote]

2. When you go to court, the judge will ask if the tenant vacated. All you have to do is answer “ the last time I checked, the tenant was still there.” That’s actually normal because many deadbeat tenants refuse to communicate. Just don’t check before the hearing date. Tenants who vacated usually don’t show up in court.

I have not done an eviction in San Diego for a long, long time, but in Nevada, the judge will ask if, in lieu of summary eviction, the parties would like to do a “status check”. The judge schedules another date 48 hours later and if the tenant has vacated, nobody needs to show up, and there is no eviction record. Me, If the tenant made me file eviction, then that’s what I want. No last minute reprieve.