State Specific Question About: ILLINOIS (IL)

My landloard gave me a 30 day notice on april 1st then he came to collect my Next months rent which is due on the 3rd. And i told him i wasnt going to pay him for that. Then he changed it to a five day notice that said that in five days i needed to be out and that 425 dollars was due. Its Been past 30 days but i lost my keys, and i called him to tell him that he needed to open the door so i could get my stuff out. But he is playing little games, and wouldnt let me get my stuff. And i called him today to ask him again and he said that in order for him to unlock the doors, a sheriff needed to be there, and that i needed to have a check?? How am i at fault.. Please respond quick.

" Its Been past 30 days but i lost my keys, "

Huh? If he gave 30 day notice on April 1, it is NOT past 30 days.

I think you should go to a tenant forum, not to a landlord forum. This forum is for Landlords to help other landlords.

Kinda sounds like your not telling the whole story.

He's not allowed to rent to you if you are under 18. I know a lot of people on here are telling you to "bug off" and go to a tenant site.

But, you could be a good tenant in the making. He may have entered into an illegal contract with you.

OR

You lied about your age and he didn't verify it?????

Either way, you need your stuff.

Did the judge throw you out, what did he say about your age?

Can you get a lock smith to let you in?

He can't lock you out, but he could be a pain and not help you get back in.

You're in a tough place kid. Maybe you could contact your local child advocacy group?

Next time you rent a place, tell the truth about your age, rent from a landlord who follows the rules, and make sure you pay your rent on time.

ALSO, KEEP A SPARE KEY HIDDEN SOMEWHERE!!!

Good luck to you.

Did I get this right?

- On March 1st you were issued a 30 day notice that your lease would not be renewed. This is allowed if you're on a month to month lease.

- You were not living there at the time and you left the premises unlocked (since you didn't have keys). This is not a smart move.

- On March 3rd your landlord asked you for rent for your final month and you refused to pay. You are obligated to pay rent for your final month of any lease unless your lease states that your security deposit can be applied to that rental payment (not very likely)

- On March 4th your landlord gave you a 5 day 'pay or quit' notice. This is allowed if you refuse to pay your rent.

- On March 10th your landlord considered that you had abandoned the premises since it had been left unlocked and you were not living there. The landlord is allowed to secure his building in case of abandonment.

I don't know about your local laws, but around here any abandoned tenant possessions are considered to be transferred to the landlord after 7 days unless the tenant makes a claim for them before the 7 days expire.

It's possible that you're a victim of an illegal eviction.

It's possible you were holding an illegal lease.

It's possible that you abandoned the property and your landlord secured it to protect his building and your possessions.

It's possible that the landlord is not allowed to hold your stuff.

You'll need to get your facts in order with EXACTLY what happened so that someone can give you some good advice.

You still owed rent if you were still there or your possessions were still there. The sad part is you turned it into an eviction.

That eviction can and will be picked up by the credit reporting agencies as a court judgement. That can affect any future car you try to buy, house you try to buy, credit card you try to get.

Eviction reporting companies will pick it up too. Either way, an eviction on your record is going to make it hard for you to rent the really nice places in the future for years on end. Landlords with nice places keep them that way by screening for things like this. Slumlords don't.

In my state simply not paying for any reason means you lose in court. There is no defense since even bad conditions meant legally you would have to deposit the rent with the court instead.

Troll.

Just for the record, Beelocks, the fact that it [the premises] had been left unlocked and you were not living there, is hardly a good reason to assume that the premises have been abandoned.

Without knowing anything about NH, I would suggest that you check the meaning of "abandonment".

Tandon,

You're in a bit of a mess.

The best thing you can do is talk to the LL, pay what is owed or at least part plus a written payment plan for the rest, such as $100 from each paycheck, and ask for your personal property back. Most states do not allow him to keep it.

Do this first thing in the morning.

Me? I'd get a locksmith in the morning.

Also, did you pay a security deposit? He can subtract that from what you owe AFTER you move out. He is NOT required to apply it until you leave.

Super clean the house and take 100 good pictures, literally, with a camera, NOT your phone! to prove how clean you left it.

The first letter was notice to end the lease. The second letter was due to non-payment. These are two separate issues, not dependent on each other.

A good resident pays his rent on time and keeps a spare key in his wallet or with a trusted friend or parent. (same with your car!)

Moshe, this is true. But I'm only guessing what the landlord in question may think to be right based on what the tenant has told us here. The tenant has not paid rent, the tenant is not living there, the tenant has left the building unlocked, the tenant has ignored demands for rent and a 5 day pay or quit notice - perhaps I should have used the term 'voluntarily vacated'?

Is the landlord really supposed to leave his vacant, untenanted building unlocked and at the mercy of the copper thieves?

Legally the landlord is not supposed to do anything until due process has been completed. Due process does not need to be completed in NH if the tenant advises the landlord that they are no longer in residence - a simple message left on voicemail is sufficient.

Realistically, the landlord secured both the property and the contents against possible theft. It is possible that the landlord has not changed the locks, since the tenant claims to have lost his keys he would not know if his keys work or not - if this is the case then the tenant has not been denied entry.

I'm not saying it's right for the landlord to lock the kid out without proper process. I'm just saying that most of us would prefer to prevent the theft rather than try to claim damages from some kid with no money who is irresponsible enough to leave the place unlocked.

Both landlords AND tenants are supposed to do the right thing - with the facts available I would say that neither party managed the situation 100% correctly. But we only have half the story from a tenant who doesn't even know what month it is :)

The important thing is that this tenant must collect together all the letters that the landlord sent and get his timelines in order so that he/she can seek proper advice.

Beelocks, your response to my suggestion that you check the meaning of abandonment is sheer drivel.

Even a tenant deserves better advice.

Moshe, once again you're absolutely right.