Landlord threatens to evict tenant over 'imaginary' problems — then tries to sue her for actually leaving
Frustrated, the tenant left her rented apartment and didn't inform the landlord until the rent was due
An Ohio woman left her rented apartment after the petty landlord threatened her to either vacate or "rectify" the imaginary issues. It began when the tenant reported a serious plumbing defect in her bathroom, and the landlord refused to repair it. Having no other option, she pressured the escrow and got the repair done. Frustrated, the landlord accused the tenant of non-existent problems and asked her to either leave the property or comply with her rules. The tenant who goes by u/jadelovessky25 on Reddit shared the latest update on March 24.
A few days after the repair, the landlord arrived at the tenant's apartment for a quick inspection. She looked around and clicked pictures, but didn't even do the basic maintenance work. Next, she went outside and left a warning notice for the tenant, accusing her of keeping "unauthorized" pets, not cleaning up after them, and having a strong pet odor in the house. All her accusations were false, as the tenant had already paid a non-refundable deposit for her two dogs and was always very particular about cleaning up after them.
Lastly, the landlord clearly lied about the pet odor because she had previously complimented the tenant on how good the place smelled during her last inspection. Frustrated, the tenant just decided to vacate the property and not inform the landlord until the rent is due. "So I took rent money, bought a fifth-wheel camper, and moved out. I'm also leaving a bunch of furniture and shit I don't want for them to deal with because I KNOW I'm not getting my deposit back, and I wanna make sure it goes to good use," she wrote.
Fast forward to the day before her rent was due; the tenant informed the landlord that she had moved out of her apartment. Confused, the landlord responded, saying she was expected to pay the rent for the rest of her lease. However, the tenant refused to meet the entitled expectation. So she responded with, "We are not going to continue paying the rent after we have moved out. You asked us to leave, so we did." It didn't sit well with the landlord, as she threatened to file a monetary eviction case in court.
Notably, the landlord had already taken $900 as a security deposit from the tenant, so asking for more money for any damage wasn't a feasible option. Moreover, the tenant reminded the landlord that under no circumstances could she demand her attorney's fees from her, as it is illegal under the Ohio Revised Code. "So, if you would like to take it to the court over a property that isn't even the code that you told us to vacate, be my guest," she added.
Landlord disputes aren't unusual; in fact, most Americans claim to have lived under at least one landlord that they disliked. A LendingTree survey of over 2,000 renters found that many were unfairly evicted from their residences. Surprisingly, among 18% of renters who were evicted, 68% said it was done unfairly. Additionally, 33% of renters reported experiencing discrimination, with 11% noting race-based discrimination. The same survey also found 58% of renters had at least one landlord they didn't like, and 25% of respondents reported disliking their current one.
Meanwhile, reacting to the Reddit story, u/buffpepperonipony suggested, "You might want to consider suing them for wrongful or constructive eviction even if they don’t sue you so you don’t have difficulty down the road with a technical eviction in your history. Potentially, that mark could have further-reaching consequences than just your ability to rent elsewhere."
u/ohlookadistraction89 said, "I hope they take you to court so everyone can see this dunce make a fool of themself. Wish you the best in finding better living arrangements; it can be stressful." Similarly, u/saddingo7070 wrote, "If anything, I think the landlord is the one who broke the lease agreement. Sue them for the time and expense required to find a new place and move."
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