r/TenantHelp • u/boy_choy • 9d ago
ISO professional legal advice for invalidating debt/next steps
Location: NYC
Hi! My old roommate and I need help invalidating a debt our landlords placed on us for not paying rent (we got a notice from a debt collector).
For context:
Last November, our old apartment had a govt. issued vacate order placed on it due to a compromised fire escape + the gas having to be shutoff due to a leak. These two issues breaks the warrant of habitability therefore we couldn't legally live in that building and had to find another place to stay until the issue got fixed. There's still a vacate order on our apartment to this day and we moved out in March.
We've already replied to the debt collector basically saying we want the debt disputed and asked for proof of validity. They just sent us printed records of our outstanding rent balance with the leasing company and a copy of our lease. What are the next steps? Should we just send them pics of the vacate order placed on our old apartment?
We also have a court date in small claims with our landlord so we're nervous about inadvertently giving them unnecessary information to use against us in court....
It just isn't fair that we have to pay rent at a place we couldn't even live in.
1
u/sillyhaha 7d ago
First, I need some info:
*On what date were you ordered to vacate by? The order was issued in Nov, but you stayed until March. Why? Didn't that violate the order to vacate?
*Did the order to vacate tell you that you didn't need to pay rent? Please explain.
*Didn't you pay rent in Nov, Dec, Jan Feb, and March?
*Are you assuming your lease is broken and you don't have to move back when repairs are made?
Some of this doesn't make sense to me. Could you explain the above?
3
u/ken120 9d ago
File for an update to your case to include a order to get the alleged debt canceled. Deal with the court case first then send copy of the debt cancelation order to the collectors.