Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Virginia

Re: consent judgment for possession

When a landlord sues for posession (unlawful detainer) there are almost always two parts to this. The law allows a landlord to simultaneously ask for possession of the property back and also to sue for back rent at the same time. Therefore, it is quite common to seek both an order for possession and money for back rent at the same time.

However, this depends on exactly what the landlord is asking for in the legal pleading or legal papers (or agreement). While it is possible (and typical) to ask for both at the same time, that does not mean that a landlord must ask for both or necessarily is asking for both.

Furthermore, you can consent to one but not the other. If you consent to give possession, but dispute that any rent is due, then your consent to possession would NOT have any effect on whether you owe any money.

You cannot (legally) be asked to pay more than the rent that is due. So if there is no unpaid rent due, then your consent to possession or consent to anything would not add to or increase the amount of money that is due as rent. (This assumes that you actually show up on the court dates and make sure the correct balance due is made clear.)

Re: consent judgment for possession

It most likely means (within the context of your situation)that there will be no need for your landlord to seek a writ of possession from the court in the event that you yourself are for some reason evicted(or subject to eviction)from the premises and that you voluntarily consent to his repossession of the property. This consent does not imply that you would or could necessarily owe money to the landlord.