![\"Landlord](\"http:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Eviction-Notice-sized166.jpg\" "\\"Should")
The decision about whether to file a lawsuit against a tenant can be challenging.\u00a0 Ultimately, a Texas landlord attorney like me is not in the best position to make this decision.\u00a0 You are.\u00a0 So, this article is going to arm you with the information you will need to answer the question, “should I sue my tenant?”<\/p>\n
Suing your tenant because you\u2019re angry is a lousy basis to make this decision.\u00a0 I get that many reading this article will be angered by these words, and I get that this may come across as patronizing.\u00a0 But please understand, my job is to help landlords make the best decisions for their investment portfolios<\/em>.\u00a0 This means I will sometimes need to tell my clients something they don\u2019t want to hear\u2026.\u00a0 I don\u2019t need to tell you that suing your tenant for no other reason than obtaining a sense of justice will not necessarily improve your bottom line.\u00a0 It could<\/em>, but it might not\u2026.\u00a0 You\u2019re a property investor because you want to make money, not settle scores with stupid, irresponsible people.<\/p>\n But don\u2019t stop reading if I\u2019ve just described you!!\u00a0 I just want you to analyze your situation from a different perspective.\u00a0 Who knows?\u00a0 The economics of this decision might just line up with your need to slam these fools with a judgment!!<\/p>\n In many \u2013 arguably most \u2013 tenant lawsuits, the landlord is highly likely to obtain a judgment.\u00a0 The problem is collecting on that judgment<\/em>.\u00a0 Judgments only declare one party to be the winner, and the other to be the loser.\u00a0 The winner must take additional steps to collect on the judgment.<\/p>\n Collecting on judgments in Texas can create a whole host of problems for landlords.\u00a0 The biggest problem is the fact that Texas is a VERY debtor-friendly state.\u00a0 And it always has been.\u00a0 You\u2019ve probably heard of the \u201cHomestead Statute.\u201d\u00a0 Texas homestead laws naturally protect debtors\u2019 homes from creditors.\u00a0 You probably knew that part.\u00a0 But did you know the Texas homestead laws also protect a substantial portion of a Texas debtor\u2019s personal property?\u00a0 And any cash the debtor may have in a checking or savings account is likely to be a part of this protected personal property.<\/p>\n If you would like to learn more detail about how Texas homestead laws protect tenants, you can download a complimentary copy of my online homestead brochure here.\u00a0 It\u2019s only 3 pages long and I wrote it for non-attorneys.<\/p>\n But the scope of the Texas homestead laws is not the worst part!\u00a0 The worst part is its reach!\u00a0 The majority of Texas tenants will have estates that are entirely protected by the Texas homestead laws.\u00a0 And when I say \u201cthe majority,\u201d I don\u2019t mean a 51% majority.\u00a0 It\u2019s more like a 98% majority.<\/p>\n I know\u2026.\u00a0 It seems hopeless.\u00a0 Keep reading.\u00a0 I promise this will get better!<\/p>\n It doesn\u2019t make a lot of sense on it\u2019s face, but it STILL might make sense to sue your tenant<\/u>.\u00a0 The reasons?\u00a0 Ignorance and apathy.<\/p>\n The consumer law types are about to hate me for this next part\u2026.<\/p>\n Texas homestead protections are not automatic the way bankruptcy protections are.\u00a0 Debtors must step up to exert their homestead rights.\u00a0 They must take some kind of action.\u00a0 If a creditor takes possession of money that is otherwise part of a debtor\u2019s homestead estate, it\u2019s too late for the debtor.\u00a0 It\u2019s VERY unlikely the creditor will be forced to return that money.\u00a0 And creditors in Texas successfully collect this way on debtors\u2019 otherwise homestead-protected assets all the time.\u00a0 The debtors simply drop to ball or give up.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s say, for example, we got a $7,500.00 judgment against your tenant.\u00a0 After we locate your tenant\u2019s checking account, we file the paperwork to garnish that checking account (BTW \u2013 we can\u2019t garnish paychecks in Texas).\u00a0 In the process, we immediately freeze $5000.00 of funds in your tenant\u2019s account.\u00a0 Your tenant will then need to file specific motions within the correct amount of time (and he won\u2019t have a lot of time) that tell the Judge, \u201cHey \u2013 this money is part of my homestead estate!\u00a0 Please release these funds.\u201d<\/p>\n Not a lot of judgment debtors will take these steps.\u00a0 They are often too distracted trying to set up a new checking account and rerouting their direct deposits to those new accounts to mess with our garnishment.\u00a0 Not to mention they now have no means of hiring an attorney.<\/p>\n Garnishments are not the only means of collecting on judgments in Texas, though.\u00a0 There are several others.<\/p>\n One tactic is simply having my office abstract your judgment and waiting.\u00a0 This is particularly effective with younger tenants.\u00a0 With a younger tenant, there is an excellent chance their economic situation will improve at some point over their adult lives.\u00a0 If they ever want to purchase a house in the future, it is a near certainty their lender will pressure them to pay off your abstracted judgment.<\/p>\n Some down sides to this approach are that we must take steps to renew your abstracted judgment every 10 years.\u00a0 Also, it\u2019s reading tea leaves for me to tell you when or if this method will pay off.\u00a0 It could happen in a few months or never at all.<\/p>\n You are best suited to determine whether it is a good idea to sue your tenant.\u00a0 I am not.\u00a0 You know your tenant better than I.\u00a0 And your understanding of these facts should be the only thing that guides you in making this decision.<\/p>\n Does your tenant have a good job?\u00a0 Has he had a good job for a significant period of time?\u00a0 Do you have access to images (or copies) of checks that he wrote you while he was your tenant?\u00a0 Did your tenant move out recently?<\/p>\n Answering \u201cyes\u201d to any of these questions means you have a better chance of collecting on a judgment.<\/p>\n Here is a list of some circumstances where you should avoid proceeding on tenant litigation (at least for now):<\/p>\n All of these are indicators that your tenant will not be ripe for a successful collection effort at all or for a number of years.\u00a0 It might be best to revisit this tenant in a couple of years or walk away entirely.<\/p>\n If you had a verbal agreement with your tenant, a contract for deed, or a lease-purchase agreement, you are almost certainly better off to walk away.\u00a0 In the case of the latter two, you merely open yourself up to some extremely painful counter litigation (i.e. your tenant sues you back).\u00a0 Under these circumstances, your tenant is likely to collect much more from you.<\/p>\n Written residential lease contracts have a 4-year statute of limitations.\u00a0 The four years begins when you discovered the debt. \u00a0For example, if your tenant moved out of your property on June 1, and you entered the property on June 15 to discover a series of damages that far exceeded the security deposit, the four-year statute of limitations would begin on June 15.<\/p>\n Umm \u2013 No.<\/p>\n Nor do I handle these cases on a contingency.\u00a0 No attorney is his right mind does.\u00a0 There are just too many variables.<\/p>\n Every one of these cases is different.\u00a0 Tenant lawsuits for non-payment of rent involve less work than do property damage cases.\u00a0 The difference isn\u2019t huge, but there is a near certainty that I will ask for a larger retainer on a property damage case.<\/p>\n My firm offers free initial consultations to landlords who would like to learn more about suing their tenants.\u00a0 Please give us a ring at 817 835-9410 to schedule your Free Consultation (Landlords Only)!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The decision about whether to file a lawsuit against a tenant can be challenging.\u00a0 Ultimately, a Texas landlord attorney like me is not in the best position to make this decision.\u00a0 You are.\u00a0 So, this article is going to arm you with the information you will need to answer the question, “should I sue my […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":10841,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[39,42,47,56,57,61,63,64,66,68,69,70,71,73,75],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10758"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10758"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10758\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10841"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10758"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10758"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlinglaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10758"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}The Big Question: Can I Collect on a Judgment if I Get One?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Why Would I Sue My Tenant if He Is Entirely Protected by Texas Homestead?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
The Sit-And-Wait Approach<\/strong><\/h2>\n
This Decision is All About Probabilities<\/strong><\/h2>\n
When is it a Bad Idea to Sue My Tenant<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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How Long do I Have to Sue My Tenant?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Is it True You Handle These Cases Pro Bono, Marc!?! <\/strong><\/h2>\n