Welcome to our first live chat!

[ohiolandlord]

We'll be here for an hour so feel free to add your questions to this forum.

[ohiolandlord]

To get things started off -

Can a landlord accept rent from tenants after he has posted a three day notice of eviction and still maintain the eviction?

[eewillison]

After posting the three day notice to evict, the landlord can accept any rent which was due prior to the posting of the three day notice. But the landlord cannot accept future rent, which is any rent which comes due after the three day notice has been posted or he waives his three day notice.

If the three day notice is waived, then the eviction cannot proceed.

[Thearthur]

If a tenant is eveicted and owes rent, what recourses does a landlord have for collecting the money owed?

[ohiolandlord]

On the subject of evictions - in what manner or manners may a landlord serve a three day eviction notice upon a tenant?

[ohiolandlord]

Thanks for your question, Thearthur.

[eewillison]

The landlord can include a second cause of action for money damages to his eviction action. If the landlord gets judgment on that claim, then he can use the normal collection procedures, like garnishment of wages or accounts, liens upon property, and so on.

There is an unfortunate saying among trial lawyers though. That is "Getting a judgment is easy. Collecting upon it is hard."

The best thing to do is to make sure that you have credit worthy tenants and/or co-signers.

[eewillison]

In Ohio, the three day notice is served by taping it to the door of the rented premises. It may also be hand delivered.

[ohiolandlord]

I generally advise landlords to collect the following information on tenants to make collections easier:

- keep copies of all checks submitted to you by tenant
- get a co-signor or guarantor on the lease agreement
- get past addresses of tenant
- get work address of tenant-
- get address and phone number of close relative of tenant
- get address of tenant of where they move to
- get bank account numbers of tenant if possible

[ohiolandlord]

Also, I always advise landlords to get first and last month's rent in advance and a security deposit equal to at least one month's rent.

[eewillison]

Another good, though informal tactic for a landlord is to look inside the tenant's car if possible. A clean car (even if old and rusted) usually means a clean and organized tenant. A car that looks like someone poured the contents of a trashcan into it (even if new) usually denotes a slob you might not want to rent to.

[Thearthur]

Please clarify: If eviction posted on the 24th of the month for failure to pay rent by the 3rd, can landlord accept payment from the 1st to the 23rd without waiving the eviction?

[ohiolandlord]

certified mail is also acceptable for serving a three day notice

[eewillison]

The landlord can accept past due rent without waiving the three day notice. Thus, the landlord can accept the entirety of February's rent without waiving the three day notice because the rent was due on February 3, 2006. What the landlord canot due is to accept any money for March 2006's rent and still maintain the eviction action, because that would be accepting future rent after the posting of the eviction.

[ohiolandlord]

Well, before we get too far ahead of ourselves - Is the tenant offering to pay the rent? That's the $64,000 question. If not, then the issue is moot. The three day notice controls the eviction action. If your three day notice specifies nonpayment of rent for February, for example, then if you file an eviction based on that notice and you accept February rent, late fees and attorney's fees from the tenant then you have to dismiss the eviction action because you are all even. If the three day notice indicates nonpayment of rent for February and March (current month) and you file an eviction based upon that three day notice then you can accept February rent but not March rent without dismissing the eviction.

[eewillison]

Keep in mind too that in Ohio, an eviction is an equitable action, thus a court will only do what is fair. Thus if you accept rent, late fees, and attorney fees, for February, then a court would likley find that you have waived the three day notice.

Further, evictions will only proceed upon a material or substantial breach of the lease agreement. If the tenant has made the landlord whole again by paying the rent, late fees, and attorneys fees, then a court in Ohio might see the breach as too insubstantial to support an eviction.

or consider our 11 part audio series containing almost 2 hours of information on the eviction process at

http://www.ohiolandlordtenant.com/eviction_audio.html

[ohiolandlord]

Live chat is now over - thanks for tuning in - we'll be back next Tuesday.

[Linda P]

Bummer! Sorry I missed it! :(

[Linda P]

Also, I always advise landlords to get first and last month's rent in advance and a security deposit equal to at least one month's rent.

Excellent advice! I insist that all my tenants pay first & last, offering to break up the final month's rent into 5 equal payments, to be included with the first five months of rent. (If they're planning on stiffin' you for the rent, it will be in the final month. Getting it up front avoids that problem.)

So when the tenant is ready to move on, I accept the 30 day notice and apply the final months rent at that time. This actually gives them a leg up on deposit or first month rent to their new place. (Freeing up money that would have been used to pay rent during the last month.)

[ohiolandlord]

Thanks for your posts Linda, come back next Tuesday and join our live chat.