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nm posted:Get a lawyer you fool. This needs to be the new thread title
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 02:53 |
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# ? Jun 5, 2024 05:06 |
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chemosh6969 posted:A non-profit is allowed to build up reserve funds. Even if they don't and want to balance out each year, if they were charging more for rent or something else, they could be balancing it out somewhere else. entris posted:There's nothing dubious about a tax-exempt organization renting apartments to people. Tax-exempt organizations can invest in real estate, rent it out, and pull a profit from it. What they do with the profit, of course, is limited by the rules pertaining to tax-exempt organizations. But they can charge you for rent, even if the rent seems high to you, and they aren't breaking any rules regarding tax-exempt organizations. Thanks again. A further clarification- it's not merely that a non-profit owns the property and rents it out. It's that the property itself is tax-exempt. We obtained records from the tax assessor documenting that. Again, I'm not sure if this makes a difference, but I feel that it's worth noting, and wondered if it had the potential to affect the arrangement.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 03:59 |
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It probably doesn't affect the argument. Even if it did affect their legal status, it's irrelevant to you. The problem with the law, in most cases, is that what they're doing wrong has nothing to do with you. They could be criminals, literally committing felony tax evasion, and you would still be obligated to follow your lease and pay rent. Unless what they're doing wrong directly affects their obligations to you, you're on the hook.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 04:11 |
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Hahah, in that sense it could make it worse. Uncle Sam trying to squeeze out back taxes by levying and administering the non-profit's assets would be a much harsher landlord than the current one.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 04:14 |
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kriminal posted:I had a DWI in march due to refusing a breathalyzer for a first offense in Texas. You NEED a lawyer. That's a ridiculous bargain. You shouldn't even be looking at any jailtime. I know someone driving down the wrong side of the highway while drunk and THEY didn't get jailtime.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 04:51 |
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CaptainScraps posted:You NEED a lawyer. That's a ridiculous bargain. You shouldn't even be looking at any jailtime. I know someone driving down the wrong side of the highway while drunk and THEY didn't get jailtime. The offer is probably 180 days probated for 6 months rather than 180 days + 6 months of probation. In other words, 6 months of probation and if you screw up then up to 180 days of jail (which leads me to believe this is a DWI first). However, this is all speculation since as you pointed out kriminal needs to quit listening to the Internet and GET A LAWYER.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 05:48 |
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Brief synopsis of my event and why I'm soliciting legal insight: I am a (remote) landlord and had a U.S. tenant who caused more damage than their security deposit covered. I am acquiring professional legal counsel but appreciate any insight knowledgeable goons can provide. Question(s) regarding residential lease agreements: What difference does the state make in exercising legal action over lease agreement disputes? [Lease was exercised in UT.] Do legal proceedings need to occur in the state in which the lease agreement was signed? What if the tenant has since moved out-of-state? Does anyone have experience arguing for/against "reasonable wear and tear"? For example, if a tenant left nails in walls which (due to remote ownership) needed to be removed by a contractor, where does that lie in relation to the "reasonable wear and tear" umbrella? What's the usual threshold for "reasonable wear and tear"? What is the statute of limitations for a landlord claiming financial restitution for damages caused by the tenant (in excess of the security deposit)? What questions should I be asking, or acquiring documented proof, so I can be better prepared? I have a signed copy of the residential lease agreement and move-in checklist (which was completed and signed by the tenant).
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 07:25 |
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In general... I'd wonder if it's gonna be worth your time and money to chase after them. The cost of suing versus the risk of not getting anything should be at the center of your decision. Do you have a solid current address for them? Do they have any money or steady job to make it likely they could pay? And is the amount owed worth it after you pay an attorney? A good lawyer would weigh these issues with you and let you make an informed choice. But some lawyers would just talk like suing was the only option, and happily take your money to get you a worthless judgment. Let's pretend you'd win the case: what's the chances you'd get paid?
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 07:44 |
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JamSessionEin posted:Thanks for that. I've been reading over the process in my free time tonight, as well as the criteria the PTO uses, and I don't think it should be that bad. It's not hard. I did trademark registrations as a clinic student. Get a copy of McCarthy on Trademarks -- it's the go-to treatise for trademark, sort of like Nimmer on Copyright. And don't forget to structure your retainer/engagement agreement to delineate which one of you will be responsible for renewal (and if it is not you, to make sure you inform her of the renewal requirements, especially the Section 8 Declaration of Continued Use during year 5, and again in year 9 along with the Application for Renewal in year 9. If it is you, make sure it is calendared) euphronius posted:Our firm charges substantially less than $2500 for pre marital agreements. Substantially less.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 11:48 |
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How would I go about getting a felony record expunged/sealed? Backstory: I live in Wisconsin, in 2007 I was convicted of offenses in 2005 of DEL CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE, SCH. II NON-NARCOTIC and MANUF/DISTR/DELIVERY OF SCHEDULE I & II NARCOTICS. I took a plea bargain for no Jail time and a few years of probation. I completed my probation in mid 2010. I have been in no legal trouble since then. I have always maintained gainful employment, and was actually employed for 4 years 10 months at a Financial Institution until recently when I was hired by a Title Insurance company. The felonies are going to prevent me from getting licensed and becoming a Notary Public. Do I have any recourse on this?
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 13:27 |
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woozle wuzzle posted:In general... I'd wonder if it's gonna be worth your time and money to chase after them. The cost of suing versus the risk of not getting anything should be at the center of your decision. Do you have a solid current address for them? Do they have any money or steady job to make it likely they could pay? And is the amount owed worth it after you pay an attorney?
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 13:38 |
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reyalsnogard posted:Brief synopsis of my event and why I'm soliciting legal insight: I am a (remote) landlord and had a U.S. tenant who caused more damage than their security deposit covered. I am acquiring professional legal counsel but appreciate any insight knowledgeable goons can provide. You've already been asked the most important question - how likely you are to get paid. The second most important question is whether you can resolve this without a lawsuit. It'll save you both time, money, and hassle. How much damage was done to the apartment, by the way? Setting those aside... (and they're all excellent questions for your attorney; contact the Utah State Bar for referral services, or google attorney in Salt Lake City - I've worked with a number of firms that come up in the first page of google results, and have been impressed) Legal proceedings should go forth either in UT, where the lease happened, or where the tenant currently resides. Either should be fine, though if you sue elsewhere make sure your lawyer does his best to get the court to apply UT law - it's pretty landlord-friendly. If your lease has a venue/choice of law/attorney fee provision, that's an important part of this too. Normal wear and tear is typically less based on on the amount of damage, and more on the type of damage. If it's the sort of thing that commonly happens over time (ten year old water heater breaks, twenty year old door hinge breaks, carpet gets worn thin, etc), it's likely your responsibility. If it's something that ordinarily doesn't happen (hole in the wall where they punched it, broken window due to drunken row, etc), especially if the tenants affirmatively caused it, rather than letting it happen by doing nothing, then it's not normal wear and tear. Statutes of limitation actually get pretty complicated pretty quickly. Without knowing more, I'd say that the default SoL for a written lease is six years, but might be different. Utah has a pile of SoL acts, and little case law on point, so it's a hassle to figure out. As far as information goes, you want as much documentation as you can get about the alleged damage. Get your contractor/local property manager to take pictures of absolutely everything before repairing the place. Three or four pictures of each item of damage, if possible. Include a newspaper in one of the photos to assist in asserting the date they were taken (it's not terribly important, but it's a handy trick). Get an itemized invoice from the contractor for repair, which includes a specific bill for each item of damage, preferably with costs broken down (parts, labor, etc). Save all communication with the former tenants, including copies of every time you've tried to contact them and get them to pay.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 14:47 |
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JackRabbitStorm posted:How would I go about getting a felony record expunged/sealed? It doesn't look like felonies before 2009 are expungeable. It looks like you'll have to wait another six years to ask for a pardon. The eight-year waiting period for pardons can be waived, but the FAQ says that's rare. Pardons pre- 2009 conviction Expungement (but check with a WI attorney)
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 15:39 |
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joat mon posted:It doesn't look like felonies before 2009 are expungeable. It looks like you'll have to wait another six years to ask for a pardon. The eight-year waiting period for pardons can be waived, but the FAQ says that's rare. joat mon, aren't his felonies federal? I'm not a crim guy at all, but the wording of his offenses look like they reference the federal controlled substances categories?
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 15:44 |
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GamingHyena posted:The offer is probably 180 days probated for 6 months rather than 180 days + 6 months of probation. In other words, 6 months of probation and if you screw up then up to 180 days of jail (which leads me to believe this is a DWI first). But he's an engineer! And there are so many lawyers who aren't competent in positions of power! [From his post history.]
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 16:00 |
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entris posted:joat mon, aren't his felonies federal? I'm not a crim guy at all, but the wording of his offenses look like they reference the federal controlled substances categories? WI and my state reference the federal Drug Schedules, I think most states do. I don't think (?) the Feds break out separate offenses/punishments for narcotic/non-narcotic, but WI and my state do. (Just to be weird, my state also defines cocaine as a narcotic) Also, I don't think the Feds care about (in their minds) piddlin' cases that result in short probations. JackRabbitStorm, state or federal?
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 16:51 |
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reyalsnogard posted:For the sake of discussion, let's assume the "worth" of pursuing legal action is there and that I have validated both signees SSNs via background/credit check. A problem is once you win a lawsuit, it doesn't mean you get paid. The court doesn't do any legwork for you. You have to know where they are. In order to garnish money you have to know their employer or bank account information. For transient people, like students or auto mechanics that can easily swap jobs, you're not going to know that information. Even if you get a garnishment cooking, they can move or file bankruptcy and you're still stuck. I'm not saying not to pursue it, but it's a real crapshoot to get paid. It sucks to spend a chunk of money suing to get nothing in the end.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 17:06 |
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kriminal posted:Thanks I already spoke with a lawyer and will proceed for the hearing before the 15 days since the arrest. This is my first offense. This is from March 11. How do you not have a lawyer yet? Make sure your lawyer knows you are not a citizen. It matters if you don't want to e deported or barred entry.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 18:02 |
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joat mon posted:WI and my state reference the federal Drug Schedules, I think most states do. I don't think (?) the Feds break out separate offenses/punishments for narcotic/non-narcotic, but WI and my state do. (Just to be weird, my state also defines cocaine as a narcotic) Also, I don't think the Feds care about (in their minds) piddlin' cases that result in short probations. It was the State of Wisconsin vs Me, if that's what you mean. And there isn't any point at this time to try to get a pardon from this states Governor as Scott Walker already said he would not pardon anyone. Can I get pardons from anyone other than the Governor of my state or the President?
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 18:28 |
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Is it worth it to take someone to small claims court over $250, especially considering it is causing a bill to be late and affecting the plaintiff's credit? Can you possibly get damages for the credit issues or is that not worth it? This is in Georgia, for reference.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 18:47 |
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Skinny King Pimp posted:Is it worth it to take someone to small claims court over $250, especially considering it is causing a bill to be late and affecting the plaintiff's credit? Can you possibly get damages for the credit issues or is that not worth it? I don't think so, but I'm not a Georgia lawyer. The $250 alone isn't worth it, and in Property Crime in the Information Age (class in law school dealing mostly with federal law) we discussed how there is not really a good remedy for hosed credit, because we spent a day discussing identity theft during the wire fraud section. Having said that, perhaps a Georgia attorney or someone who knows more about consumer law has a better answer.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 20:12 |
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Absent some rare circumstances, you usually cannot claim damage to your credit rating from the result of a non performance of a contract. I have never heard of it but I guess it could be possible with the right facts. So I hope that clears it up!
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 20:14 |
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Skinny King Pimp posted:Is it worth it to take someone to small claims court over $250, especially considering it is causing a bill to be late and affecting the plaintiff's credit? Can you possibly get damages for the credit issues or is that not worth it? If it's affecting your credit rating, you should look into the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and possibly file disputes with the credit reporting agencies about the dispute. It's been a while since I've looked, but my understanding is that it's hard to get damages for someone who misreports a debt to a credit bureau. However, you can sue them in small claims if you like, for the underlying issue. Is it worth it? How much is your time worth? Most small claims systems (at least the one here in Utah) let you recover both based on the merits (i.e. what they owe you for the contract in question), plus filing fees, courier fees, that sort of thing. So in theory if you can collect you get the full $250 and they pay your expenses. You lose time, effort, and stress, which might not be worth it.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 20:14 |
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I found out that my employer has been shaving hours off my paycheck. I work as a cook in a restaurant. When I punched out on Sunday the 5th I noticed "Oh drat, I logged 78.xx hours this pay period. Pretty good!" Come this Friday when I received my check, it was rolled back to 72.00 hours. I was pretty infuriated; however, I don't have my time slip from the previous pay period. I obviously don't want to ruffle feathers without substantial proof. I also went back and looked at old pay stubs and noticed that for the past couple months all my hours have been even. All in the range of 68-73. In the restaurant industry, it is pretty much impossible to consistently land on an even number of hours. What is my best course of action? I have been saving my time slips since I noticed. However, I am assuming this has been going on for awhile. Is there a way I can have them give me a record of alterations to my hours? I plan on approaching them the next time I am shorted hours and following up with the Department of Labor if they don't comply. Another concern I have is that if I do bring it up and they don't comply and I go to DoL, do I have any rights that protect me in case they just cut my hours? Restaurant industry is notoriously known for this. Instead of firing, they just cut hours substantially forcing employee to get a new job and quit. For what it is worth, I have never been disciplined and am overall a good worker.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 20:28 |
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JackRabbitStorm posted:It was the State of Wisconsin vs Me, if that's what you mean. And there isn't any point at this time to try to get a pardon from this states Governor as Scott Walker already said he would not pardon anyone. Can I get pardons from anyone other than the Governor of my state or the President? Walker's "no pardons, I'll leave that to the Courts" line shows he's an idiot, constitutionally speaking. (but politically astute, unfortunately) Only the executive branch has pardon powers. The U.S. executive only has pardon power over federal cases. A state executive only has pardon power over his/her state's cases. Hopefully Walker won't be Gov. in 6 years. joat mon fucked around with this message at 20:38 on Aug 14, 2012 |
# ? Aug 14, 2012 20:35 |
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Walker will pardon a bunch of people on his last day of office anyway.
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# ? Aug 14, 2012 20:40 |
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Sypher posted:Another concern I have is that if I do bring it up and they don't comply and I go to DoL, do I have any rights that protect me in case they just cut my hours? Restaurant industry is notoriously known for this. Instead of firing, they just cut hours substantially forcing employee to get a new job and quit. The answer to this is most likely in your state's labor code, can't really answer this without knowing the state.
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# ? Aug 15, 2012 00:31 |
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Dogen posted:The answer to this is most likely in your state's labor code, can't really answer this without knowing the state. Michigan
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# ? Aug 15, 2012 05:02 |
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Arcturas posted:(and they're all excellent questions for your attorney; contact the Utah State Bar for referral services, or google attorney in Salt Lake City - I've worked with a number of firms that come up in the first page of google results, and have been impressed) Your post was very helpful! It answered some questions (e.g., SoL), provided direction (e.g., file in UT), and raised awareness on other items. The newspaper/timestamp trick is awesome -- it also provides scale/size_expectancy. woozle wuzzle posted:But do you have their current address?
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# ? Aug 15, 2012 15:30 |
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I have friends at Parr Brown and Ray Quinney. I don't know the rates at the firms, or how long this is likely to take, but they'd be worth talking to.
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# ? Aug 15, 2012 16:08 |
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Sypher posted:Michigan It looks to my non-Michigan law eye like your state has a whistleblower protection act, and that you would fall under the "Payments of Wages" section. Mich. Comp. Laws § 408.483. It says they can't fire or discriminate against you based on that, and I know in other areas of employment law (unemployment) loving with your hours too much can be considered an effective firing. I found this here: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/WH43_Employment_Wage_Complaint_Form_R6_29_05_141360_7.pdf It does say that you forego som civil remedies by filing with them (eg you probably won't be able to file suit), but it's pretty much this or going full-out with a court case, I think, unless someone from Michigan with more employment law experience knows better. My advice would probably be to call the wage-hour department and see what they say, I would imagine this would qualify as an unauthorized deduction if you can match up your own records to your pay stub hours and show a discrepancy. Also obviously, if you think you want to sue them, call a lawyer. Probably call one anyway.
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# ? Aug 15, 2012 16:14 |
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It was suggested I ask this here, here is the situation. I moved into a place in February , the current building owner set the lease for September claiming we do fall to fall. Now she sold the building in February without ever telling us that she was going to. The new owner won't resign the lease. He has other rental property in the area, he was like "Look I need to refurbish the apartment move into this rental property I have and I'll just carry the deposit over to the new place", now that has fallen through. Since the place isn't finished yet. Naturally we were like , okay so we didn't save up a deposit have not been looking for a new place, now he's saying "Yea, it's not going to be finished". I have no savings for a new place, I have some friends I can couch surf with and I can afford rent, but not the cost of moving into a new place deposit etc.. I just need to know if I have to be moved out on September 1st. The lease i have is literally a residential lease from Kinkos, the previous owner of the building didn't have her own. The other situation was that I got a new Roommate we kept trying to resign the lease etc.. it was just a no go situation, everytime we asked he just is completely unresponsive and incommunicative to a severe to degree. Occassionally I'll get a text msg from him. My Old Roommate doesn't live there anymore. He never resigned the lease with the new tenant. Also, apparently I was suppose to record the lease? I don't know. Anyway that's my situation. I have money, but not enough to move into a new place. I live in New Orleans, La
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# ? Aug 15, 2012 16:57 |
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1) When does your lease say it ends? 2) What does your lease say, if anything, about tenancy converting to month-to-month? 3) What does your lease say about termination (eg required notice)?
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# ? Aug 15, 2012 17:08 |
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Louisiana is not a great state to rent in. I posted my experience and advice back about 10 pages. You really don't want to try to fight this, especially without a valid lease, because you won't get a fair hearing. Especially since your lease ends, you will get evicted and have a judgment against you, especially in New Orleans. The best you could hope for is to get the landlord to give you an extension in writing until the other place is ready. That may work, but if the landlord thinks he will have to evict you, most will just do it fast to get it over with. The only thing in your favor is the kinkos lease probably doesn't include the waiver of the notice to vacate that most leases here have, which buys you a little time (usually about a week) before they can file for eviction.
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# ? Aug 15, 2012 18:29 |
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Me and my girlfriend live in a condo in a subdivision in Michigan. The way things are set up, we have a "co-owner" who are KC Property Services. We are responsible for upkeep of the interior of the condo, and they are responsible for the outside. Well, they used substandard building materials for the brick exterior, and most of the mortar has crumbled and fallen out. Due to the gaping holes, a nest of yellow jackets moved into the exterior brick wall. I've been contacting the property service trying to get them to do something about it for about 3 weeks now. I call every couple days and they say "We'll look into it." I got fed up and sent them an email explaining how bad the situation is getting because the nest is expanding and they're dragging their feet. This time they responded and said getting rid of the yellow jackets would be MY responsibility, not theirs. I don't understand how that could be the case, since it's an exterior wall and the problem was caused by their negligence in the first place. The problem is since they're a "co-owner" I don't know who I can even contact for help about this.
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# ? Aug 16, 2012 14:12 |
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Apartment question. I am in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I have two roommates. We live in a 3 bedroom apartment. Our lease was up for renewal in August, and is managed by a separate leasing agency. We received our 30 days notice from the landladies that the lease would renew automatically, but we had to sign a new copy of it, and we agreed that that was fine. On August 1st, we still had not received copies of the lease to sign. Our one landlady called us and threatened us with eviction if we did not sign the lease immediately. We notified them that the leasing agency had never given us copies to sign. They backed off. On August 4th or 5th, we received copies of the lease. One roommate was out of town, so we waited for her to sign it - the landladies were aware of the reason for the delay. On August 8th, she and the other roommate had both signed. On August 9th, I was looking over the lease so that I could sign it and give it to the landlady when she came to do an inspection of the fire alarm system on the 10th as we had agreed over the phone, and noticed that our rent was listed as being $1500, not $1350 as we had been paying previously. I called our landladies and they said yes, the rent had increased. I informed them that we had never been notified of that and that we disputed the increase. On the 10th, our landlady came over for the fire alarm inspection. She agreed to reduce the rent back to its previous level and we paid her our first, last, and security deposit. All three of us signed the lease with the amended rent. Yesterday, the 15th, we received copies of the lease with our signatures and their signatures, as well as a notice saying that, effective immediately, we are not allowed to keep our bikes in the apartment. I called our landlady to try to negotiate that, and she told me okay, we could have three bikes. This is still an impossibility for us, as I have three myself, and my other roommate has two. When I informed her of this, she raised her voice to me and said that I was "really pushing her" and that she was "losing her patience." We ended the conversation at that point. None of us would have signed the lease if we had known that this was going to be an issue, as it makes it impossible for two of us to live here. Bike theft is a huge issue in Philly, and I can't afford to leave mine out on the street like she wants us to. There is nothing in the lease itself about bikes in the apartment, just a notice that came back with our signed copies of the lease. I feel like this was in retaliation for making an issue out of the rent increase, and at this point all three of us want to be let off the crazy train, get our last month's rent and security deposit back, and leave without being on the hook for the rest of the lease since the terms of the tenancy changed in a way that we were not able to consent to before we signed the lease. WHAT DO WE DO? We called our leasing agent and he said that we probably could be let out of the lease, but is that accurate? I'm going to talk to a lawyer today, but in the meantime, does anyone have any advice?
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# ? Aug 16, 2012 15:05 |
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Why do you have three bikes to yourself? That is a lot of bikes. Hypothetical question regarding traffic stops: If I'm transporting an unloaded firearm in my trunk (not in the cab of the car), is it better to inform the police officer stopping me, or do I only need to worry about that if he wants to search the car. I'm not transporting anything illegal, I have no problem with the officer searching my car, I just was wondering the best time to inform the officer of the weapon.
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# ? Aug 16, 2012 15:20 |
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ann disaster posted:Apartment question. I am in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She can't tell you to not have bikes in the apartment. Well, she can TELL you, but she can't do a god damned thing about it. You could have 1400 bikes in the apartment, it's your apartment. So she can send you a little letter saying only 3 bikes total. You have 5 bikes. Tough poo poo for her. Your lease wasn't changed, she's just making up bullshit rules. Unless it's in your lease, it doesn't exist. If you have 1092830 bikes, she has no remedy unless you violate the lease. Just ignore her notice. woozle wuzzle fucked around with this message at 15:30 on Aug 16, 2012 |
# ? Aug 16, 2012 15:27 |
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Really quick/vague question that I know depends on state laws. Someone recently told me that when 2 people get divorced they only fight over "marital property" or things that happened/assets that were obtained after the marriage. They said this is why Mark Zuckerberg waited until after Facebook went public to get married. This challenged my limited understanding of divorces as their are depicted in the media (which has never ever gotten the law wrong.) I don't need a long drawn out explanation of the subtleties of divorce laws, but is the marital property thing true?
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# ? Aug 16, 2012 15:35 |
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# ? Jun 5, 2024 05:06 |
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areyoucontagious posted:Why do you have three bikes to yourself? That is a lot of bikes. 2. Nice road bike 3. Beater/commuter bike (or maybe a fixed wheel, depending on proximity to PBR and Fedoras or hopefully a velodrome) areyoucontagious posted:Hypothetical question regarding traffic stops: Hypothetically, I'd tell an officer if I'm going into the trunk for something (like tire changing tools) with him/her there. An unsurprised cop is a happy cop. If there's a search, things have already gone south, and "You do not have permission to search" is all that should be said. Things may change if you have a concealed carry permit. What state?
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# ? Aug 16, 2012 15:51 |