“I’d like to know if anyone else has had similar experiences and what they did to successfully remedy this type of horrible situation.”

“Dear PoPville,

I’m a small-time landlord of a studio apartment in NW DC. I bought the studio for myself in 2018 and it was my dream apartment, so when I moved in with my now-fiancé I was looking forward to renting it out to someone who would (hopefully) love the space as much as I have. It was the first apartment that was all mine and I’m a sentimental person, so it meant a lot to trust someone else living in it.

My 1st/current tenant is the absolute worst and owes 3 months of rent and late fees outlined in the lease agreement.

DC laws seem to favor tenants over landlords and I’m at the end of my rope here. I’m sick of their excuses for not paying: death in the family, new job, mugging, bank only reimbursing half of stolen funds; the list is endless and, unless they’re having the absolute most unfortunate 12 months of their life, are so wild they’re hard to believe.

Before anyone asks, I did a background check and a reference check before signing the lease and handing over the keys. Everything checked out and there was nothing that made me concerned they couldn’t afford the rent. Now with less than a month left on the lease I’m starting to worry they’ll abandon the place or worse squat. I’ve threatened suing for back-rent and this tenant doesn’t seem to care and/or thinks I’m bluffing. In fact, they’ve told me to go ahead and file a claim with DC Small Claims Court…. what the actual f**k?

What else can I do? Maybe I’ve answered my own question, but I’d like to know if anyone else has had similar experiences and what they did to successfully remedy this type of horrible situation. I feel so defeated having my generosity and trusting nature taken advantage of in such a way :(“