Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Missouri

A friend of mine rented a house in Missouri. The landlord let her move in before getting an occupancy permit, or even cleaning it from the former tenants. The house had a lot of problems and would not pass an inspection. They were in the house for a total of 17 days. The landlord has 1200.00 of her money. one months rent and an equal amount for the security deposit. After a few days, there was a fire on the stove that caused smoke damage in the kitchen. My friend and her friends repainted the kitchen. That's where the smoke stayed. The landlord now says it will cost 800.00 to have a professional come in and "finish" the work. We are not sure what work she is talking about. She is planning on keeping the entire 1200.00, and wants her to pay the additional 800.00. Now keep in mind there was no lease, no occupancy permit. And certainly no 800.00 in any kind of damages. Is my friend liable or not. I say no. but I wanted to check first before I said anything to her.


Asked on 2/04/10, 11:38 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Anthony Smith LawSmith

In general, your friend might be liable for the additional $800. she might get some or all of hte money she has already paid out back. You say that there is no lease. I assume you mean there is no written document that is entitled "Lease" There may be other docuyemtns that could evidence a lease. If there i snto writing, such a receipt for $1,200 then yrou friend wil ahve a tought time proving that she ever gave the landlord $1,200.00, or that all money paid was not for the 17 days she (has) stayed there. A reciept might be evidence of an otherwise unwritten lease agreement. Missouri law can fill in many unwritten criteria of a verbal lease agreement.

There might be an advantage to suing the ladlord for return of some or all of the money, rather then waiting for the landlord to sue for another $800. Have your friend consult direclty with an atttorney in her area. Many offer a free or low cost intiial consultaiton.

Good luck

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Answered on 2/09/10, 11:57 am


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