Co-signer on lease, disputed debt
Date: Wed, 01/14/2009 - 16:43
I had signed a 12 month lease with a co-signer (my mother) at an apartment complex in ohio, and I lived in the place for over a year and a half. The people who owned the property sold it to another business after my original lease had expired. Upon moving out I followed the proper procedure (30 days notice, giving up my keys), and I never received my security deposit back, or an itemized list of charges as required by ohio law. They now have a record on my mother's credit report for $320, and they're pressuring me to pay it. I cannot act on my mother's behalf, but I am not going to pay this money, the new property owners are thieving weasels and have done the same thing to other tenants I knew from there. I now live thousands of miles away from ohio, so it'd be quite difficult for me to get up there for court.
My questions are as follows:
1) As a co-signer to a 12 month lease, is she liable beyond those 12 months?
2) Can I dispute this charge under her credit, or will disputing it under my credit automatically dispute her report? (she has assertiveness issues and is not as eager to put it to collection agencies as I am)
3) What legal remedies do I have in this scenario? I understand the debt is for a small amount $320, but I'm willing to spend more than that fighting this for the sake of both of our credit reports and principle.
You may pay off the debt by yourself to save your credit report
You may pay off the debt by yourself to save your credit report from ruining.
Once the 12 months from a lease are up, no tenant is responsible
Once the 12 months from a lease are up, no tenant is responsible for months after that as it automatically switched to a month to month situation.
Is this charge on your credit report also? If so, then paying it will not actually make your credit any better and will in fact make it stay for a whole 7 years from date of payment, and a paid collection doesn't look much better then a unpaid collection.
What you can do is send them a DV letter, asking to see proof on this money owed, exactly why it is owed and such. If they do try to sue you, they would have to do it in your home county court, no theirs.
How much is the security deposit? Is it worth going to Ohi
How much is the security deposit?
Is it worth going to Ohio? You can do most of the prelim stuff over the web/mail and just show up for the court and visit mom. You can also ask for your expenses in coming to court.
What are the basis of the charge?
How long has it been since you moved out?
If Ohio's law is like California's in such that if you do not receive the refund and/or an itemized list of charges within 21 days of moving out then they have NO claim to the deposit and are required to reund the total amount.