Q: Can my landlord evict me because she doesnt want to pay me for work she asked me to do for her
In Feb we had a snow storm and a tree fell on the house we rent the landlord was 3000 miles away she asked me to handle all the projects to get the house fixed dealing with roofers,fence co. and gutter co. which I had to leave my own job several times to meet with and handle the entire oversight of the project per her request I kept a itemized list of everything I did plus times and dates The entire process took about 4 months to complete when the entire job was complete I deducted the amount of wages I earned per her request from my rent and paid her the remaining amount and provided her with the itemized list and receipt Now she says if I do not pay her the money I held back she is going to evict me I've lived here for 3.5 years am currently in a lease which isn't up until sept i need to know if she can do this? I feel she is retaliating because she doesnt want to pay me what she owes me i also have text messages
A: She can try - she will have to give you a legally correct written notice, lawfully served, and then if you fail to pay by the time demanded, she has to file an eviction action in the local court. That will be your chance to defend against it, presumably on the basis that you do not owe her the money. If the Judge/Jury believe you, you should win and get to stay. If they believe her, you will be evicted in the matter of just over a week or so and finding a new place with an eviction on your record will be difficult. An alternative approach could be to simply pay her full rent and you file suit, suing her for the money owed - either in small claims court or regular court. The up side is no eviction possibility; the downside is you still have to collect it from her if you win and that may be more difficult though presumably she at least owns real estate and, if she has other tenants, you can garnish their rent or, if you are still there, you can then deduct your Judgment amount from what you otherwise would owe as rent. Given the potential consequences, you may wish to at least review everything with a local landlord-tenant attorney immediately before being boxed in. Good luck.
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