We are home from the first camping trip of the season. We had a great 4 days with wonderful weather, motorcycle riding, bicycle riding, and cookouts! Excellent! I'm looking forward to many more trips. My wife mentioned Hilton Head today. That might make for a good trip in May.
Anyway, after I returned home, I received a call from one of my friends who is a landlord. She is evicting a tenant, which all successful landlords do with regularity. In fact, evictions are simply a routine part of the business.
Unfortunately, my friend's eviction is anything but routine. The tenant got one of those free, scumbag, legal aid lawyers who is helping the tenant fight the eviction. Believe it or not, the tenant is claiming that the property was not inhabitable due to a mouse infestation. Ironically the tenant is completely responsible for the mouse problem due to his filthy housekeeping skills. He is so dirty that he has been cited twice by the Nuisance Officer for causing a nuisance. Normally, none of this would matter. If the tenant doesn't pay the rent, they are evicted - PERIOD!
In this case, the legal aid lawyer is claiming that because the place was uninhabitable, no rent was due. To make matters worse, the legal aid lawyer has demanded a jury trial for the eviction. This is where I learned something. I didn't even know that it was possible to have a jury trial for an eviction! UGH! At any rate, if the tenant can post a bond for a few months rent, he will get a jury trial. The landlord will be stuck with the tenant for several months and will lose money the entire time. Of course, if the landlord prevails, she will receive the lost rent for which the bond was posted, but will probably never recover any more than that. What a bunch of CRAP! Our society has gotten so screwed up that no-one seems to know what is right anymore. It is certainly NOT right that a deadbeat tenant gets a free lawyer. It is also not right that a honest landlord is made to suffer by the legal system.
I'm ready for another vacation!
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