How to fix my mistake and get the money that is owed to me?

Question

After hanging out for a while and doing a lot of reading on BP, this is not what my first post was planned out to be. Unfortunatly my ex-tenant has made that decision for me...

So... I rented out my duplex (my first rental property that I happen to live on the other side of) in mid January, and the tenant asked to split up the deposit, half on the 1st of Feb, half on the 1st of Mar. They moved in in the middle of Jan and paid through until the end of the month. Well they informed me yesterday that they moved out while my wife was at work, (I am in Afghanistan) they had lost their jobs, and would not be paying rent nor the deposit due for Feb...

What are my legal options? They are completely moved out and will not tell me their new address.

They signed a 1 year lease.

They gave my wife permission to enter and she said there is not any damage that she noticed.
 
Should I try to rerent the place out or do I have to leave it for a while since I did not get the keys back or a written notice?
 
I have their license plate number and some other details. My wife did not make copies of their DLs or get their socials...

I am not sure what my options are. I am in Texas if that matters.

Can we sue them for the rent and deposit that they owe? What about the costs of serving them papers and the court itself?

Also, since this is also a matter of principle to me now, can we add the costs of time spent advertising, getting the locks changed again, cleaning, and whatever else is an inconvienience since we bent over backwards to help them to be able to move in... (Which will not happen again)

All in all this was a good learning experiance but Id still obviously like to get what is owed to me...

Thanks for your time.
Shane

Aly W. · Answer

You were incredibly lucky; I've had several tenants who lost jobs/rental assistance and refused to leave. They were evicted, and caused a lot of damage. I would be thrilled to have an unemployed tenant simply disappear and not cause damage! On the other hand, I always get the full security deposit before they get the keys. No exceptions, ever.

Don't ever feel sorry for a tenant, because they will never feel sorry for you.

Randy Bearden · Answer

I know you see this as a set back but this actually could have turned out a lot worse. The bad part is, they said they lost their jobs. The good parts are, they immediately moved out, they notified you they were out and they left the property in good condition.

You will spend more time and money pursuing legal action than it's worth. Time to dust yourself off, get back on your horse and get another tenant in there.

Lesson learned, don't accepted partial deposits or rents. Something else I would like to share. If the occassion ever arises, never rent to friends or family. I learned this one the hard way.

Jon Holdman · Answer

Full deposit plus one full months rent, in cash, before anyone moves in. Mid month move in? A full months rent at move in the half a month on the first.

Dean Letfus · Answer

If they left it in good shape thank God and get on re leasing it.  It will happen to you often if you build a portfolio, welcome to real estate investment :-)

Sam W. · Answer

Shane Rawlings    First...thanks for serving.

It has happened to us all and can be a bit discouraging.  Chalk it up as a lesson and drive on.

Stay safe.

Xing Zhu · Answer

You were so lucky they just left like that.

James H. · Answer

Let it go and find new tenants

Lolita Ellis · Answer

John hit t on the head. You all have to try (and I mean try) to do your due diligence in screening applicants. As much as we may have a heart this is your business and treat it as such. Thank about how many lenders or businesses would cut you a break if your we're down on your luck. I'm sure this is a lessons but move on and just write this down as what not to do. It took me 8 years to recover from my mistake of using my heart and still working on it. I'm just now coming back from under the rocks.  No tenant is better than a tenant not paying at all. Prepare to rent it again. And maybe you should have your wife log onto BP to so she can participate in a community were she can avail answers especially if she is going to assist with the biz. Good luck to both of you.

John Blackman · Answer

This probably won't be the last time it happens to you.  Honestly be glad they left and didn't leave any damage.  Market the property and get it leased up again.  Pursuing them legally is going to cost far more than you will get out of it.  It's much easier just to re-lease the place.

To prevent this, I would spend more time screening your tenants.  BiggerPockets just released an e-book on Amazon.com for 0.99 that is a great synopsis of what you need to do to screen a tenant.

http://www.amazon.com/BiggerPockets-Guide-Rent-House-ebook/dp/B00AXNQC8S/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1359863792&sr=1-1&keywords=biggerpockets

Your property is a substantial capital investment.  Treat it as such.  Don't let anyone into your place because they say they can pay the rent.  Getting anxious to get a tenant is an easy trap to fall into.

Make sure your tenants have good income.  Get proof.  Make sure they have been employed a long time by the same employer.  Make sure they are making 3x the rent.

Get the deposit up front before you let them move in.  No deposit, no keys.  Can't pay the deposit and first months rent without a blink, move on.  I could go on, but really just buy the book linked above.

We all want to be nice and give people a break.  I've done the same and lost my tenant early because I didn't wait for a more qualified renter.  My personal suggestion would be to count yourself lucky and move on.

How to fix my mistake and get the money that is owed to me?

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