Rent Escrow Problems On Lease Option
I have tenants who are consistently late on their rent. I have to file them into rent court each month. This month when we arrived at court I found out they decided to do a rent escrow because of issues they have with the house. They are saying the foundation is cracking and it's spreading. They say they told me about this, but I don't have anything in writing. They are also saying they don't want to purchase the house if they have to put this type of work into it. I told them, as it states in their lease, they are responsible for the first $300 of maintenance and repairs, after that the owners or the insurance may cover it. I've never dealt with the rent escrow procedure before and want to make sure I get the rent that's owed to me.
I do have these clauses in my lease (in addition they filled out a move-in condition inspection form saying everything was fine when they moved-in):
- tenant has inspected premises and agree they are in satisfactory order...
- tenat agrees to notify landlord in writing upon first discovering any signs of serious bldg problems...
- tenant has inspected the premises and acknowledges it is in satisfactory condition, and accepts said premises in "as is" condition as suited for the intended use. Tenant agrees to responsibility of up to $300 per incident for maintenance and repairs of premises...
Does anyone know what I can expect and what I should be prepared for in court?
Thanks in advance
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