Landlord died; his family crazy. Advice please | GTAMotorcycle.com

Landlord died; his family crazy. Advice please

AF4iK

AF4iK

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I know we've got some landlords around gtam so I'm hoping someone can help get me on the right track. This is a two part question.

Part 1
My landlord passed away unexpectedly a few months ago. Now, his mother is collecting the rent cheques and without really questioning it I gave her some post dated cheques in her name instead of the original landlord's.
From a brief search online, it seems I should still be making the cheques payable to the original landlord and let the estate sort it out. Also, I haven't gotten any legal notices indicating who my landlord is now. I'm thinking of cancelling the cheques I gave her and issuing new ones made out to the deceased. Is this the right thing to do?

Part 2
As I mentioned, the mother is receiving the rent cheques but the sister of the deceased is also trying to run things together with her mother. I was fine with this but unfortunately they have started making life difficult on us. I won't get into the details but suffice it to say I tried to reason with the sister calmly today about an issue they raised but she screamed at me for a good couple min and hung up on me. Batshit crazy I tells ya. Do I even need to worry about anything she says? Having received no legal notifications, I believe I should only be dealing with the executor of the estate (which could be her I don't know). My plan is to tell her to provide me with this otherwise we will not speak to her. Is this a good idea?

Thanks in advance for your help!
 
I don't know too much about the Landlord Tenant act as I only rent rooms to students but all I've ever heard since day 1 is that the tenant always has the upper hand. So much so that I would never even consider renting out stand alone apts. etc.
Why not start by witholding rent altogether? That should give you the leverage you need to get a proper dialogue going.
Do you suspect they want you gone? What's the big issue here?
 
AF4iK said:
I know we've got some landlords around gtam so I'm hoping someone can help get me on the right track. This is a two part question.

Part 1
My landlord passed away unexpectedly a few months ago. Now, his mother is collecting the rent cheques and without really questioning it I gave her some post dated cheques in her name instead of the original landlord's.
From a brief search online, it seems I should still be making the cheques payable to the original landlord and let the estate sort it out. Also, I haven't gotten any legal notices indicating who my landlord is now. I'm thinking of cancelling the cheques I gave her and issuing new ones made out to the deceased. Is this the right thing to do?

Part 2
As I mentioned, the mother is receiving the rent cheques but the sister of the deceased is also trying to run things together with her mother. I was fine with this but unfortunately they have started making life difficult on us. I won't get into the details but suffice it to say I tried to reason with the sister calmly today about an issue they raised but she screamed at me for a good couple min and hung up on me. Batshit crazy I tells ya. Do I even need to worry about anything she says? Having received no legal notifications, I believe I should only be dealing with the executor of the estate (which could be her I don't know). My plan is to tell her to provide me with this otherwise we will not speak to her. Is this a good idea?

Thanks in advance for your help!
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Start here
http://www.ltb.gov.on.ca/en/


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Try and set up a meeting to discuss the next step with the landlords face to face. They're going through a rough time as is and are also trying to figure out what to do. Soon as you withhold the rent they can start proceedings to evict you. And legally a tenant can't withhold the rent for an issue such as this.

As a landlord any issue I've ever had with my tenants has been simply resolved by talking to them instead of immediately going to extreme measures. I'm not saying its right of her to yell at you, but her brother recently passed and its difficult for her as well.

Also, just keep a record of each interaction just in case.
 
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Call the mom and tell her you have some new cheques for her. Cancel the ones in her name and give her new ones in the ones for the original landlord's name. It can take years for the property to legally change hands, especially if there is some bickering over the estate.
It will be up to the executor to demonstrate that the landlord has changed. DO NOT STOP PAYING, that is a fast track to eviction.
 
fastar1 said:
It will be up to the executor to demonstrate that the landlord has changed. DO NOT STOP PAYING, that is a fast track to eviction.
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The original landlord is dead. The tenant knows he is dead. He can keep writing cheques to dead guy but who's going to respond to property repairs and maintenance? With holding one cheque to help clear the stand off is a bad idea? Money talks.
 
inreb said:
The original landlord is dead. The tenant knows he is dead. He can keep writing cheques to dead guy but who's going to respond to property repairs and maintenance? With holding one cheque to help clear the stand off is a bad idea? Money talks.
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Complain to the person he gives the cheques to. If she's happy to deal with the money (in the deceased's name), she can be responsible for handling problems too.
 
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AF4iK said:
Part 1
Also, I haven't gotten any legal notices indicating who my landlord is now.

Part 2
As I mentioned, the mother is receiving the rent cheques but the sister of the deceased is also trying to run things together with her mother. I was fine with this but unfortunately they have started making life difficult on us. I won't get into the details but suffice it to say I tried to reason with the sister calmly today about an issue they raised but she screamed at me for a good couple min and hung up on me. Batshit crazy I tells ya. Having received no legal notifications.........
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fastar1 said:
Complain to the person he gives the cheques to. If she's happy to deal with the money (in the deceased's name), she can be responsible for handling problems too.
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I'd want something on paper. With holding payment should motivate the mother and daughter to sort it out. Not trying to stiff anybody, just get things back on track. Firing checks into a black hole and hoping for the best might not be the best strategy. Please advise.
 
inreb said:
I'd want something on paper. With holding payment should motivate the mother and daughter to sort it out. Not trying to stiff anybody, just get things back on track. Firing checks into a black hole and hoping for the best might not be the best strategy. Please advise.
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True, getting things formalised is better, and withholding one cheque shouldn't be the end of the world (except maybe if they're batshit crazy)!

From the sounds of it he died young and suddenly, so there probably isn't any will so no assigned executor. World can get messy like that sometimes.
 
Maybe keep a record of this thread incase you need to show proof of your intentions for withholding money? (Incase of a lawsuit) Anyone else think that could be helpful?
 
mastahjay69 said:
Maybe keep a record of this thread incase you need to show proof of your intentions for withholding money? (Incase of a lawsuit) Anyone else think that could be helpful?
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I'm not sure about that but hasn't internet chat been used against people in a court of law? So why not?
Keeping records of emails, letters and conversations can't hurt.

I don't claim to have any special insight on the matter, just pretending I were in the OP shoes, what would I do? I advise only what seems intuitive, which isn't always a good idea because so much of life is counter-intuitive. We have the lawyers to thank for that.
 
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Do not withhold rent. That is pretty much the one thing you can do that erodes your power as a tenant. Definitely keep records of paying rent and who you're paying it to.

"Can a tenant withhold rent because their landlord isn’t properly maintaining their building or unit?

No. If the tenant withholds rent, the landlord can give the tenant a notice of termination for non-payment of rent and then file an application to evict the tenant. There are other options for dealing with maintenance problems. (See questions below)"

http://www.ltb.gov.on.ca/en/Key_Information/STEL02_111464.html
 
TwistedKestrel said:
Do not withhold rent. That is pretty much the one thing you can do that erodes your power as a tenant. Definitely keep records of paying rent and who you're paying it to.

"Can a tenant withhold rent because their landlord isn’t properly maintaining their building or unit?

No. If the tenant withholds rent, the landlord can give the tenant a notice of termination for non-payment of rent and then file an application to evict the tenant. There are other options for dealing with maintenance problems. (See questions below)"

http://www.ltb.gov.on.ca/en/Key_Information/STEL02_111464.html
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I see what you're saying (but did not read link) but the land lord has died. The willingness to pay rent is still there but it should go to the authorized receiver, no? What if uncle Louie shows up? Pay him too?
Please let me know if I'm being obtuse.
 
Just get receipts. Maybe your bank records will be enough. Specify on the check what it's for. (Rent)
 
Let's see, first you need receipts. You made payments to the mother. What if she doesn't inherit the estate? The estate/new landlord can come after you for unpaid rent. You can say you paid to the mother and go after her, but that's a long shot.

You need receipts from the estate saying the rent has been paid in full (the payments to the mother are valid) and direction from the estate where to make further payments to until you get a clear indication of who the new landlord shall be. Also, ask for a point of contact from the estate to deal with if things are happening. Ask them politely that you only want to deal with one person and you can't talk to 3-5 different people.

Also, is living there worth the headache? Are you a good tenant? If there is no term left and you're month to month notify them politely that you would like to move and the reason is because of this mess. If they can resolve it themselves and leave you in peace you would like to continue. No more craziness. Being polite is the key.
 
Paying the rent to some random person (the mother in this case) doesn't mean you're paying rent. Since you have received notice of the death of the landlord you could make your cheques payable to "Estate of landlord_name_goes_here" Whoever is the estate administrator (aka executor) will have to open an account in that name to handle things like rent due.

At some point you should get official notice of whoever is the estate administrator and you can take instruction or deal with them. Of course you don't make your cheques payable to some other individual without tons of paperwork. Your bank can help with this if you're not sure.
 
inreb said:
I see what you're saying (but did not read link) but the land lord has died. The willingness to pay rent is still there but it should go to the authorized receiver, no? What if uncle Louie shows up? Pay him too?
Please let me know if I'm being obtuse.
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I see what you're saying too - the question is really, who do you pay rent to. I *feel* like it should go to whoever owns the building, which will undoubtedly still belong to the deceased at this point. I don't have a definitive legal answer for you, sorry.
 
Sounds like your doing the rite thing. You can legally ask for a copy of the will to see who the executor is and who the property passes to. Making out the checks to the estate sounds like the rite thing to do in the meantime.
 
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