I own a small piece of land in an industrial estate in Byford (outskirts of Perth). I was approached by the next door neighbour, a timber merchant to lease the land. We struck an agreement last year and he paid me the first month’s rent. Sine then I am getting the usual excuses (cheque is in the mail). After he has failed to turn up for 3 meetings, I am confident he has no intention of paying me.
Has anyone dealt with this situation? How?
What rights do I have to move his stuff off the land?
What are the differences between a commercial and residential lease?
Any resources (letters) on the net?Any help would be great.
RPiller
Rob,
What exactly do you mean by ‘struck an agreement’…doesn’t sound too legally binding ??
Cheers,
Dazzling
“Go hard or go home”
If you have a lease and he is in arrears, you can actually take legal action, get a court order and lock him out.
Sell his <edited> and recoupe what you can. If he signed a personal guarantee then you go after him for the money.
Get a solitor, you may even be able to just enter property change locks and auction it all.
Don’t delay, do it today.
Byronent
Adelaide SAThanks for the input. Unfortunately, I do not have a proper lease and this has been my downfall. I have contacted a lawyer experienced in these matters and I am hoping the tenant will vacate. I have no hope of getting the arrears. Hopefully this will act as a warning/reminder to other landlords.
RPiller
I know a guy who paid $77 for a baseball bat a few years ago…he says it was a great investment and has paid for itself many times over.
if you don’t have a lease what is the issue.
lease the place out and then get some mates around and evict the SOB.
That is simple solution. NO lease, no solicitor no drama.
Byronent
Adelaide SAbyronent makes a few good points but personally i like JasonBourne’s idea much more.
Agressive and very effective, a few blows to the head and he’ll always pay his rent on time.easymoney
Chaps,
That may be an effective solution if you are most like people and have very little to lose.
I thought the objective of property investing was to firstly accumulate wealth and secondly to preserve and protect it.
Going around swinging bats and causing injury or evicting tenants unlawfully is a fantastic and very effective way of undoing many years of wealth creation…
I’d stick to the lawful avenues…in the end you’ll be way ahead.
Cheers,
Dazzling
“Go hard or go home”
dazzling “go hard or go home”
uh, confusing post – the jerk hasn’t paid rent…
cheers
brahms
CALL NOW…adults only (boys and girls ask mummy or daddy first) ~~ 1900 HOT BROKER ~~I guess the agreement isn’t worth the paper it wasn’t written on!
If you can, or if the property is fenced, lock it up and get the Lawyer to send a letter to the tennant along the lines of unauthorised us of your property, that he can reclaim his materials once he pays for the time he used your yard (do you have any record of him paying? Chqs are traceable!!!!!); that way if he bust open your locks/fence and removes his goods you have proof of him breaking the law. If he doesn’t care about the stuff in your yard, then you have the right to auction it off to recoup lost revenue – or that is what I would think (my dad did something like this).
Alternatively, with the Lawyers assistance you can try to “find a solution to the problem” by forming another NEW and Written Lease.
I tend to agree with Brahms, keep it legal and keep your nose clean. You’ve already admitted that you might not see any money and have, regrettably, chalked this one up to ‘education’, perhaps doing some of the above will turn it around for you.All the best, and let us know how you go!
Cheers
C@34
Robpiller
Hi,
Having worked for a short time in Property Management i have come across similar situations although they were all under a lease at the time and were therefore taken to tribunal to settle. One case however was very similar in which a family friend had taken advantage of the property owner,ceased paying rent and was also still living there. His solicitor advised him to clear out all tenants property, place on front lawn, change the locks and be happy to forgo the arrears which in term would make things easier and guarantee him an empty house. He took this advise and then appeared at the house the next morning to find everything gone and has never heard from them since.
As there is no lease in place there is also no proof the property is thiers or they were living there.I suggest clear it out, send him a letter via a solicitor or not stating the goods will be removed and sold by such and such a date.That way if he doesn’t show you have given warning.
If you were under a lease there are very strict guidelines governing the sale of previous tenants property. In your case no lease no worries.
No lease………
Hhhmmmm, you poor bugger! Agree slightly with the lads, and I can sort it out for cash for you if you like
.But no, cathnniv has a good point, send them a letter first, letting them know it’s time to get out. If they don’t abide, go in, dump their stuff out the front/or sell it, change the locks, done.
Or if he is actually a decent person(doesn’t seem like it), he may actually be happy to sign a lease. Maybe?
Good luck.
Baseball bat….hehe nice!
J.
Given that you don’t have a lease it appears that legally speaking you won’t have a leg to stand on. Having said that, a verbal contract is still legally binding, but you would have to prove somehow what the original agreement was, and the intentions of the parties when making the agreement. If there’s nothing in writing, and no independent witnesses, then that would be pretty hard.
If it were me, I’d fence off and lock up the yard. Then send him a letter stating that he can regain access to his goods by making good the arrears and then paying in advance thereafter. Also inform him that if this doesn’t happen by a certain deadline, his goods will be sold off to pay the outstanding amount.
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