If you recall, a few months ago I was having an oh-so-awesome time trying to keep my old pad but after a failed attempt to convince the lords of the land not to extract more gold from my satchel, that exposé quickly digressed into me trying to find a new home in a hurry. I hunted all throughout the peninsula, (because the east bay is too ghetto even for me), and because I needed to find a place closer to my job. After two weeks of stalking renters on Craigslist, doing the whole song and dance of “I’m an excellent tenant” I found what I thought was the perfect place, but boy was I mistaken.
In case you were wondering why I hadn’t been around for much of the summer, this in part explains why
I should have known something was up when the guy that was renting the house out told me there was no written lease. To make matters worse there was a “previous tenant” still living in the house that just was not ready to let go yet. I didn’t mind so much because I just wanted to get out of “looking for a place to live mode” and back into “doing what I normally do” mode. I was in a rush and possibly blinded by my love for the picturesque neighborhood that was not unlike my kick-ass community in west downtown San Jose – trees, parks, shops, bars, gym, etc. It was great (and I miss it terribly.)
My old digs in downtown San Jose
I lived here, isnt it nice? (Too expensive!)
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
My new temporary roommate, Mr. Grumpy, on the other hand was not so great. When my friends and I pulled up to the house to unload the moving truck, we sat on the curb for nearly 30 minutes while Mr. Grumpy argued it out with the owner of the house. To my astonishment even one of the roly-poly neighbors came to add his two cents to the argument. Things were getting pretty shady, but my friends and I were both tired and hungry from moving tons of heavy junk down four flights of stairs. En fin, I didn’t pay much attention to what was being said –though, I specifically recall a comment about the “thugs” sitting on the curb “just waiting to throw a drug party” – which couldn’t have been farther from the truth.
Suffice it to say that the tone was set for the nightmare that was to be, but of course that was only the beginning. To save you the pain of reading too much prose, let me summarize my experience with the house by saying that at night that place was straight creepy ya’ll!
*not the actual house but just as creepy
October 30th, 2007 at 12:14 pm
Hey Juan!
Finally a post from you! haha. I love reading your stuff, it’s off the wall/ironic/funny.
But in regards to your question, if the owner doesn’t have your money the next time around I would pursue legal options.
October 30th, 2007 at 4:37 pm
Juan,
I’m glad you “learned´´ not to do any more “money-related matters” without a written contract. As a landlord myself, I wouldn’t even *think* of trying to rent a space out without a lease (or month-to-month agreement). And a tenant shouldn’t either!! I guess the moral of this story is don’t put off setting up your living arrangements until the last minute - you couldn’t have been pressured into such a shaky setup if you weren’t desperate for a place to live.
October 31st, 2007 at 7:46 pm
As a landlord, I think he has 21 days in California to return your deposit, with interest. It’s also illegal for him to mingle deposit funds with his other assets (e.g., the mortgage payment). You definitely should go to small claims and sue for the total amount still owed and interest on the whole thing. At the very least, you should make him give you a cashier’s check so you don’t need to worry about it bouncing (unless it’s a fake and then I think the criminal law can deal with him and do a lot more damage than you can).
An oral lease is weird, sure, but giving money away to someone without a contract is just silly. You knew that!
November 1st, 2007 at 12:03 pm
@Frank - Thanks man, I’m glad you enjoy my articles. Makes them all worth writing.
@John - I should’ve known better — really I wasn’t rushed. I looked for a long time and there wasn’t anything available or anything I liked. This place i liked and I thought it was perfect. By that time I had to be out and was stuck.
@strange bird - He’s supposedly going to get money from his refinancing deal but I’m tired of waiting really. He owes everyone money and he’s under a lot of stress — yeah yeah — I’m so sick of it already. bah — tell you one thing I will never do that again
November 2nd, 2007 at 7:49 am
Oh Juan, you silly man. I’m glad your ma took care of his butt, at least for the $1200, and good luck with the rest of it!! Either way, he should pay for his shadiness.