Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Virginia

no agreement signed from tenant

My son moved into my boyfriends apartment and worked with him...My boyfriend asked him several times to sign a agreement on paying rent and the utilities, but my son refused to. Is my son still responsible to pay the rent and the utilities while he was living on my boyfriends property. My son had been in jail and my boyfriend ask him to save his money for his attorney and bondmens and he didn't... I am stuck in the middle....... Please help me with this as soon as you can.. My son is taking him to court on Tuesday for refuses to pay him for the work he has done. Which my boyfriend feels that this is owed to him for the rent and the cost of the utilities my son used. Who is right.......


Asked on 2/20/09, 8:55 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Michael Hendrickson Law Office Michael E. Hendrickson

Re: no agreement signed from tenant

Your boyfriend(in my opinion). Your jailbird son appears to have an astonishing sense of personal entitlement. (And, yes, needless to say, under the facts you've described, he's responsible for the rent and his share of utilities which any court hearing his lawsuit will take into consideration in making its decision.)

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Answered on 2/20/09, 9:05 am
Cary Moseley Law Office of Cary Powell Moseley, PLLC

Re: no agreement signed from tenant

Oral agreements are valid and they may both be right. A Judge may find the son owes some rent and the boyfriend owes something for the work, and these amounts may offset each other. It would have been a good idea to agree to all this in writing before they decided to live together, as there is no way to tell what a Judge will order each to pay, if anything.

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Answered on 2/20/09, 9:08 am


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