Q: My son can’t afford to pay his remaining off-campus rent of $5k for this Spring semester, due to COVID 19 job loss.
He hasn’t been able to work since March 2020 and I have been furloughed since March as well. He is unable to get a student loan on his own and has no Co-signer. His rent for the school year was 10K, which is extremely expensive. His roommates have paid in full. His unpaid portion is now affecting his roommates. The landlord will not allow anyone to store items at the house over the summer, until he pays his remaining balance. The landlord is difficult and intimidating when he tries to communicate his financial situation. What options or advice can you give?
A: If he doesn't pay his part of the rent so that the rent is not paid in full, then the landlord can file to evict all of them and sue all of them for the unpaid amount. Landlord can also make adverse entries on their credit records, lowering their credit scores and making it difficult to rent from future landlords who check their credit records. An eviction filing also is a permanent record that can make it difficult to rent from a landlord who checks. You can't force a landlord to be understanding, but try to work it out with the landlord. Or maybe his other roommates will chip in, and he can pay them back later. Maybe they are more understanding than the landlord, since it affects all of them. Currently, court action in Ohio is suspended, including evictions. But they will resume when courts re-open.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
