For owners
If you rent out a home and your tenant stopped paying
Plenty of owners rent out a floor of the house they live in, or a single apartment. The paperwork is the same as a large landlord's, and the mistakes are just as costly.
Rafiq works with owners only. He reviews your lease, writes the notice the way the rules require, files if it comes to that and appears at the hearing. We will tell you when settling is the less expensive road.
We help with
Notices to pay or to leave
Filing and hearings
Leases for one or two units
Deposits and move-out letters
Belongings a tenant left behind
How it usually goes
An owner's case in three steps
Most can be settled before a judge is involved. When one cannot, these are the steps.
Talk first
We look at the lease and what has happened so far. Sometimes a letter or a payment plan ends it.
A notice that holds up
The form, the wording, the dates and how it is delivered all matter. A notice that fails can mean starting over.
If it reaches a judge
We file, appear and explain what the judge needs to see. You get a plain account of each hearing.
Common questions
Owners ask, we answer
Can I change the locks or shut off the heat?
No. In most places that is not allowed even when a tenant owes rent, and it can cost you more than the rent. We will tell you the lawful route and how long it usually takes.
Do you also represent tenants?
Yes, in other cases. A lawyer who works with an owner never works for that owner's tenant, and the two files are kept apart.
Can I write the notice myself?
Some owners do. The usual mistakes are the wrong form, the wrong delivery and the wrong dates. A short review before you send it costs less than starting over.
Has a tenant stopped paying?
Tell us in a few lines what has happened. Rafiq will say what the next step is.