Hmm, if it's a lease and legally binding you have a case. Inquire about that. Also, has anyone else noticed that the word "deadbeat" also says what you should do to them "beat dead"?

He's dead Jim, you grab his phaser, I'll grab his wallet.....

In cases like these it is standard operating procedure for the deadbeat to become your butler.

I think that is in cases of car accidents only though.

If only Awkward.... If only.

So it turns out today exactly NONE of my tenants paid rent. So now I have no money for mortgage, I got about 2 hours of sleep as Nin was busy pacing and filling her anger hump (she's a bit of an anger camel that way). The lease is indeed a legally binding document, however due to the reasons posted by dhelor that's really not the route I want to take. I'm going to sit down with him tonight
and try to work something out.

I always knew that kid was trouble!!! What with the never going to class, and his mother paying his rent, and the infected nipples. You should purple nurple him until he agrees to work more hours at McDonalds and pay what he owes!!!!

Tell Nin to calm down. I will call her tonight and talk her down from her anger high before she esplodes and you are covers with Deninne inerds.

Oh Z you are so right. Curse him and his infected nipples!

I'm running on about 2 hours of sleep today. Think I'll crash and burn around noon... :/

Sorry to hear. Fortunately (well, for me, at least) I never had anyone skip rent, so I don't really know what to do with that. Late payments, yes, but no one ever bailed. How soon is the mortgage due?

...So no less than 3 co-workers have offered to float me until the deadbeats pay. I'm conflicted about accepting this charity but it's heartening to know that they'll do it for me. Perhaps the bank will delay my account rapeage for long enough for the money to be transferred.

That is true, and fair. However, that's not Stylez's problem.

Stylez, these guys may be in this or that hard situation, but there are two facts you need to focus on.
1) To rent rooms, you must be heartless and not put up with any of this BS.
2) They gave you their word, and you gave YOUR word based on your trust of that. They've come on hard times, yeah, that happens to everyone, but they've also betrayed your trust and now you're in a bad position because of it.

You're going to end up homeless and with ruined credit if you put yourself on the line to help these guys with their hardships. It isn't your problem, Stylez, and you're going to need to be a bastard about it, even if that means threatening and pursuing legal action. This is PRECISELY the reason you have them sign a lease.

Also, if any of them intend to stay with you, you might consider kicking them out. If they've defaulted on their lease once, there's nothing saying they won't do it again.

What Lobster speaks is the truth. I've been far too lenient on them (the curse of owning a home from before I was mature enough to handle the responsibility). I'm going to get this sorted out tonight and we'll see how that goes.

Tempting, but from what I hear crossing the border into the US these days is an adventure in itself, I don't think I'd make it to Mexico!

Stylez, I'm a landlord as well, although I do not rent out the house I live in. Renting to college students is the one of the most risky groups to rent to. Ouch.

Here is the bad news...If they didn't sign a lease, they don't have to pay you anything...ever. However, if you kick them out, you will have no hopes of collecting any rent until next term.
The good news is...you can legally put their stuff on the street TODAY, where if they had signed the lease, you could not do this. If fact, they could stay there for months without you being able to legally kick them out, and don't even get me started on 'taking them to court'. It's barely worth your time.

I won't ask you why you bought a house that depended on the payments of renters to fulfill it, but your best course of action is to sit them down one at a time, and discuss your issue (mortgage) like adults. Keep them as tenants, unless they are disruptive, and work out how they are going to pay you. Allow no video game playing....but have them get a job. As an alternative, you can have them 'work off part of the payment'....and have it written and signed agreement. For instance, if you need the grass mowed, or any landscaping stuff to do...exchange rent for work. Hell, you could have one of them be your maid, another be your landscaper, and another for a chef. Good luck.

EDIT: Oh, and you might want to your house on the market (ASAP - Spring sales = higher return), if you cannot afford to stay in the home. It's better to sell your house, than have the bank sell it for you. Not to mention the extreme damage that would do to your credit.

Also, you've probably a decent relationship with them, so you can't be too harsh...just say something like, "Sorry bro, you've got to clear out of the room, so I can prepare it for another renter...else I'll be forced to foreclose and become a street dweller myself....Dude, I'm sorry, but I don't have a choice. Can you be out by __?"

Oh, and put a 'For Rent' sign in your front yard ASAP....to let your existing tenants know that you mean bidness.

A primer on how to deal with folks who owe you money.

The idea to let the deadbeat work his debt off is excellent. Can you work out an agreement that will allow you to pimp him out as a male escort with the proceeds going towards the rent balance? Basically, add a "Delinquencies and My Beotches" rider clause to the "House of Stylez" rulebook?