Phone Call from Landlord Post Filing

[LynnD]

So I filed for bankruptcy and my 341 is next week. I included my previous landlord because she was a nutbag and I didn't trust her. We did break the lease and we did leave and it did take her two months to rent again so I also knew that she could potentially have a claim for that unpaid rent for those two months.

So I get a phone call on my voice mail from her saying she her name and that she received a notice from regarding a previous tenant and a bankruptcy case and she wanted to know how she could file a claim. That we DESTROYED her sacred property. When we first moved in, we had several conversations about the condition of the carpet and the pet smells. She refused to do anything and so we just figured 'well she can't accuse of us messing it up! It is already terrible!' We painted and actually made improvements so I know this is an attempt to just get me back but it will also be my word against her word.

I'm Pro Se so my guess is she thought she was calling my attorney but who knows..

Does she have anything that she can do against me? I broke the lease in Sept and filed in December.

If she shows up at my 341 meeting, what can I expect to happen? I know I can expect her to say a bunch of lies so I'd be prepared for that but even if she comes in and says 'Omg, they destroyed my sacred property' what is the Trustee going to do/say?

The day I go, the Trustee has 12 cases on a 1/2 hr slot so he certainly doesn't have much time to get into it with her.

Should I email her?

Thanks for any advice.

[tyson24]

Right on your notice it should say: Please Do Not File a Proof of Claim Unless You Receive a Notice To Do So.

You will know ahead of time if she plans to be there. I seriously doubt she will be allowed to do that. It would end up costing her so much money most likely. She would need an attorney as well I believe.

[LynnD]

The thing is.. I'm telling you, this lady is a nut case. For example, about a year into our 3 yr lease, we'd get random phone calls about every other month.. sometimes they would say our lease was up and we needed to meet to renew. Other times it would say that the lease was up and so the following month our rent would go up $200. Then it would be random calls that we didn't pay our rent so she was going to the court the next day. We'd have to scramble and send her copies from the bank showing hte check cleared. Or she'd call and say she accidently threw our check in the fire so please send her a new one and then the next day she'd call screaming that we hadn't paid so she was going to court. OMG, it was terrible which is why we just left.

So there is no way she is going to read that sentence and understand it. I anticipate she'll see the court date and show up ready to fight. And she would be the type of person to A-cause a massive scene or B-wait for me outside to cause a scene. I don't so much care about that as long as the Trustee will just ignore her and not take into account what crap she might start spewing.

Will I know via Pacer? If so, what area would it be listed on? I'm filing Pro Se.

[frogger]

You can find out most everything on paper. Hopefully, you have good documentation and photo evidence of your case. You also need to examine your paperwork and see if you completed a move in / move out inspection report. If not, she has no admisable evidence as to the condition of the property when you moved in. You also need to check your state regulations about how long your former landlord has to give you the final condition of the property and either a refund of deposits or bill for damages. If it has been a few months, more than likely, her time frame for wanting damages has passed.

Also... rest assured that the trustee has seen his/her fair share of nut-cases. Trustees are not stupid.

[chicagoannie]

In Illinois a landlord must give a written notice of any damages to property within 30 days after move-out. Other states my be different. I would not worry to much about this - GOOD FOR YOU FOR INCLUDING HER as a creditor; that was very wise of you.

If she shows up at your 341 and makes a scene - you be calm and professional, don't interact with her whatsoever.

[LynnD]

I should have added this is a Chapter 7 case so even if she did claim damages and photographed the terrible carpet and claimed the 2 months she went without rent--wouldn't it not matter anyway? I'm no asset Chapter 7.

I do have photos -- not so much of the house per se but photos of the kids with the condition of the house in the background. When we left the house, we took photos of my son's room because we had a mural painted in there and wanted to have it redone at the new house so you can see the condition of that room. We have photos of some rooms before and after.. before we painted and after and how nice it looked. (we painted with her permission). The ONLY claim she would be able to make with damage would be the carpet and I may have emails from when we spoke to her about the condition of the carpet and how we tried to get her to put in new carpet.

I'll check the laws in CO for landlord. She has not sent us anything. She did send me one email saying she had a dream the night before that she was watching my family move some heavy things and was watching us with disgust and she clearly heard the lord say 'should you be disgusted or should you pray for them' and so she wanted to email me and tell me she was praying for us and that we reap what we sow and she hoped we'd send her money here and there for the rent that she had missed out on. NOTHING about damages etc.

Also we did not do a move in or move out inspection.

[pavlikclan]

Dumb question but if she's filed isn't this creditor in violation of the automatic stay by contacting her? I know it happens once in a while and you give them the case number whatever. However, it is not the debtors fault said creditor is to ignorant to properly read the paperwork and contact the right person?

[frogger]

Dumb question but if she's filed isn't this creditor in violation of the automatic stay by contacting her? I know it happens once in a while and you give them the case number whatever. However, it is not the debtors fault said debtor is to ignorant to properly read the paperwork and contact the right person?

Yes, but don't forget that the OP is dealing with a whack-job for a creditor. And to the OP, you don't have anything to worry about. If she shows up at the 341, just look at it as comic amusement.

[Peeps]

If she decides to go to the 341, just let her open her mouth... the trustee will figure things out pretty quickly if she's really that big of a nutcase. I would assume it's the quickest and easiest way for her to have her claim tossed. Might even provide some amusement for the rest of the crew! Based on what you've noted, it seems likely she'll misunderstand the purpose of the 341 meeting; just give her the opportunity to stick her nose out.

You can then calmly point out that she has violated the automatic stay and appears to believe that you should be providing her legal guidance. Let her nutcase phone calls keep rolling to voice mail - you'll have a nice set of recordings to prove your points.

And last, don't let her create more stress for you. Even crazy people need to take some accountability for their choices (I speak from experience on this one). She made your life miserable... there's no sin in letting her spin for a few cycles. Relax and enjoy the ride.

[SweetGeorgia]

LynnD, I agree that you should be fine since you're a no-asset Chapter 7. Still, she's crazy and could show up just to mess with you. I guess you'll just have to be calm and prepared; if she shows up, it will be obvious that she is crazy and you're not!. She probably saw the word "claim" and thinks she can get something out of you.

I actually think that, with creditors like this, violation-of-stay type retribution is more likely. It might be a good idea to check your county courthouse website to make sure she hasn't filed a lawsuit (and keep checking). I remember reading a really colorful violation-of-stay case which involved a landlord like that.

At least you're already out of that place; and good for you!

[dumpinmydebt]

Even if you caused damages, they happened before you filed, so she can't claim them.

Let her show up. I'd just laugh. She can't do anything. If she doesn't follow proper court procedures, she is going to tick off the Trustee. He will allow her to open her mouth, but once it goes from professional court to the Maury show, he will tell her to shut it or kick her out.

Think about what a fool she will look like. And if she follows you out of court, just ignore her. They do have security there usually when you enter, so make sure you are in that area before she tries to get into it with you. I'd even tell the security officers that she is harassing you if you have to.

[tcreegan]

Hi all, Hi LynnD,

Do not contact her, and document every time she contacts you. Date, time, content, etc Keep your response neutral. You have a good chance she will go off her rocker and violate the automatic stay big time. Run the evidence past your attorney, file for damages in BK court.

As others have said, if you listed her as an unsecured creditor in a no-asset Ch 7...it's game over. Period. See above.

A claim has to be filed in the BK court, calling you thinking you were your own attorney somehow shows she is clueless. All the more likely she will violate the automatic stay. See above.

As to showing up at the 341, if she is not asking matter of fact questions, the trustee should shut her down. The reason creditors never attend the creditors meeting is that there is nothing they can do there except ask a few questions. She can spout lies and moan about how unfair it all is, but as an unsecured creditor in a no asset case....it is just wasting the trustees time.

Remember to document anytime she bothers you, BK judges are pretty favorable to the debtor...

...you might be able to get some $$ for your time and trouble!

Good luck w/ this, let us know how it turns out!

Tom in Colo

[Laurie77]

How do you find out what other cases your trustee has on the schedule?

[free2breathe]

Laurie, go to PACER and log in for your state. Click on "reports" and click on "calendar". They don't charge you to do this. Search the calendar for your trustee's name. The names of other cases and their case numbers show up on the calendar.

[enuffznuff]

Maybe I was reading it wrong, but it sounded to me like the landlord originally called wanting to know how to file whatever answer or response, etc...thinking she was calling a lawyer's office.
The OP is Pro Se, so I actually believe that contacting her for some purposes is allowed, because she's acting as her own attorney. Calling demanding payment isn't allowed, but it didn't sound to me like that is what the landlord was calling for, originally...and the OP specifically said the landlord hasn't sent her anything listing damages.

Collection activity during the stay is not allowed, but I'm not sure crazy emails about dreams of you moving stuff are disallowed, lolol....could be an interesting test of the law! ha!