So I had to evict a person out of my home. Went to court, I won $$$ and possession. She moved out. How do I collect the $$$ she owes and how do I add in for damages and unpaid utility bills?

12/6/2011 10:06:27 PM

i'm no legal expert, but didn't think you could add on extra stuff after the judgement is issued

12/6/2011 10:10:11 PM

Quote :

"1. If the other party (defendant) has the money and is present at the trial, he/she can pay you right then. 2. If he/she does not have the money at that time and you both agree at the trial, the judge set up a payment schedule. If the defendant is not present at the trial, the court will send a copy of the small claims judgment to the defendant. The judgment will order the defendant to pay you in full within 30 days or tell you and the court where he/she works and the location of his/her bank accounts on form DC 87, Affidavit of Judgment Debtor. 3. If the defendant doesn't pay the judgment as ordered, you will have to collect your money through an execution against property or a garnishment."

I assume you went through small claims in the first place. Contact the court again for information though would be your best bet.

12/6/2011 10:10:28 PM

My advice is to just cut your losses. You will never see the money, even if a judgement is issued

And if you do see the money, it will be years from now.

12/6/2011 10:24:11 PM

From eHow.com, so take it with a grain of salt...

Quote :

"1) Review the court order. Determine whether the order clearly directs performance of a specific act. Compare the language of the court order with the facts of your case, and evaluate whether you can reasonably establish that non-compliance has occurred. 2) Draft a motion requesting compliance. Obtain blank forms from the clerk of court, if available. Identify in your motion the specific act that was ordered by the court, and specify those portions of the court order that require enforcement. Include a statement of facts to support your claim. 3) File your motion with the clerk of court. Arrange to have it served on the opposing party, and obtain a court date from the clerk. Commence preparing for the court date, and determine what facts you will need to prove in order to convince the judge that action is required. Ensure that all witnesses necessary to prove your case are subpoenaed to appear on the hearing date. Ask the clerk of court to assist you in obtaining subpoenas and have them served by the county sheriff. 4) Attend your court hearing. Ensure that you bring any physical evidence you need to establish your case, and plan to question any necessary witnesses to establish your claim of non-compliance."

link:http://www.ehow.com/how_2149987_enforce-court-order.html#ixzz1fods9mMu

12/6/2011 10:27:41 PM

If the person even attempts to fight giving up the money, it's a pointless exercise for you at that point.

12/6/2011 10:30:34 PM

unpaid judgement on their credit report may persuade them to pay...could be a real issue for them when doing anything credit related..possibly send it to a collection company

12/6/2011 10:47:32 PM

Quote :

"My advice is to just cut your losses. You will never see the money, even if a judgement is issued And if you do see the money, it will be years from now."

Fuck that; letting stuff slide is why people try to get away with stuff like that. Too many people don't have any principles on their own, and unless they know their feet will be held to the fire, they'll try anything.

Even if you never see a dime, make sure you totally fuck whatever credit they happen to have.


If they ever wrote you any bad checks, that's extra leverage and you can press criminal charges for that.

12/6/2011 11:13:54 PM

depending on how much it is, I may or may not try to go after it. Chances are if someone has been evicted, their credit is already in the toilet so a judgment/collection agency isn't going to bother them.

12/7/2011 1:07:40 AM

I wouldn't let anything slide. I mean maybe 50-100 bucks or something, but I'd take that motherfucker to small claims even for one month's rent. It's a principle thing.

12/7/2011 1:41:57 AM

^no, but you CAN get a wage garnishment put on them if there's a court order/finding that the money is owed. You can also slap a lien on any property they own (including their car) which will eventually get them to pay up.

12/7/2011 1:43:40 AM

^ This.

And why were these additional monies not included in your initial lawsuit?

12/7/2011 3:15:02 AM

^^^ I get the issue of principles Duke and in principle, I agree. However there is a dollar figure associated with the time I choose to spend on any particular thing, and for me, the money lost is often worth not spending the time of chasing a worthless piece of trash. I'd be content to get the judgement, ask for the 30day payment or garnish and wait for the court to do its thing.

12/7/2011 7:02:55 AM

Quote :

" And why were these additional monies not included in your initial lawsuit? "

This is what I was wondering as well. I didn't think you could tack on extra money to a settlement after it's already been through the courts. You should probably talk to a lawyer that specializes in rentals.

12/7/2011 8:39:50 AM

At the very least, it does sound like two different issues. The first is the money that is owed due to your previous judgment. Sounds like a judge already told the individual they are liable of the money they owe you and are refusing to cooperate with the judge's order. If I'm not mistaken, that's a crime (not sure if it's being 'held contempt of a court order' or not, but it's something). You can go to your clerk of the court who can give you more information on what to do, but I don't think it's nearly as involved as going to court your first time around.

(That's all I know from what I've known others to go through. The rest of this is pure speculation, but it makes sense...)

The second thing is the extra money they owe you. If they were evidicted via the court order and caused additional damages AFTER the judgment, it seems like you would have to go back to small claims and file another case for the added damages. If the expenses you are talking about are what I first thought and what wolfpackgrrrl and a few others are thinking... meaning you knew about these expenses before you went to court the first time and simply didn't sue for them... I'm not sure the judge would want to hear about it.

12/7/2011 9:02:58 AM

Quote :

"^no, but you CAN get a wage garnishment put on them if there's a court order/finding that the money is owed. You can also slap a lien on any property they own (including their car) which will eventually get them to pay up."

not in NC. State/Federal debts only.

12/7/2011 6:14:29 PM

Quote :

"You can also slap a lien on any property they own (including their car) which will eventually get them to pay up.""

The judgement is a type of lien. You can do a suit to foreclose on the lien if she has any assets of value and your judgement has priority other creditors. However, in situations like this there is typically little collection potential. My guess is she owns no real property (because she was renting from you) and either drives a piece of shit car worth nothing or has a loan on it in which case the lender for the vehicle would have lien priority over your judgement.

12/7/2011 8:29:08 PM

Only way you get paid is if they decide to clean up their credit or sell a piece of real property, make sure your address stays current at the clerk of courts office.

12/7/2011 11:23:37 PM

Quote :

"Fuck that; letting stuff slide is why people try to get away with stuff like that."

nothing to add, but ^ ftmfw

12/8/2011 8:07:05 AM

I was renting my house to my real estate agent. I took a job out of state and rented to her, thinking she would pay rent and take care of my house and possibly sell it for me when the market turns around. House was built in 2008, 4bedroom, garage, etc...

She didnt pay rent on time at all. I took her to court and won back rent, late fees, and court cost. At the time the utilities were still in my name. She didnt pay them. So I had to pay them to keep my credit good. She put down a 1200 deposit. In court I won 836$. She was thinking that the deposit would cover the rent and utilities. NOT!! She had $250 worth of damages and almost $450 worth of unpaid utilities. And she was evicted on the 14 and ordered to leave by the 24th. Thats 10 more days of rent that was not accounted for in the judgement. I was not awarded utilities because she lied to judge and said she was going to pay them.

So judgement + 10 days of rent ($400) + utilities + damages = she owes about $750 when the deposit is taken out (dont have exact numbers on this computer). So basically i dont have to take her back to court. The judgement states $836, she owes a little less.

I will do everything I can to tack this on to her credit and get my money. She is dirty and a liar. I was warned but didn't listen. Lesson learned!

If anything, maybe this being on her credit will keep her from being able to do this to somebody else. She does own an old 1996 Lexus SC300...... worth maybe $3000.....maybe i can put a lien on that.

12/8/2011 7:09:28 PM

Where in the hell did you find this real estate agent?

12/8/2011 8:40:53 PM

I would imagine she would have a hard time completely disappearing on you, seeing as how you have to advertise your name and cell phone number to be a real estate agent.

12/9/2011 9:11:16 AM

lol yeah you'd think that would be the sort of profession that you wouldn't want to piss people off. Personally I'd put a lien on her car if she doesn't pay up.

12/9/2011 10:21:01 AM

To be fair, I think real estate agents have had a pretty rough time, financially speaking, since 2008.

12/9/2011 2:26:17 PM