Tenets changed move in date

pmanis14

New Member
Jurisdiction
Florida
Hello,

I was informed yesterday Aug17 that my apartment that I am supposed to move into on Aug 20 would not be ready until at least Aug 26. While this is of course super-inconvenient it is actually going to cost me and my roommates a decent amount of money. We had all already taken off work to move in and we will have to take off more days of work. For myself, I am losing $175 for missing that second day of work and my roommate is losing $150 from having to take off more days of work. They are checking us into a hotel for the week and we will have to eat out for every meal since we will not have a kitchen, this is of course very expensive. We also have to rent a storage unit to put our stuff in. They were also charging us $600 for the month of Aug. I guess my question is can I expect to compensate for the financial loss because they failed to honor the move-in date of the lease.

I am sending the property managers a letter with our request to be compensated for everything I said above but if they do not agree do I have good grounds for a civil suit of some sort? or is there anything I can do??
 
I guess my question is can I expect to compensate for the financial loss because they failed to honor the move-in date of the lease.

Ask the landlord or the apartment manager if the property is willing to reimburse you for the inconvenience.

Thank the person for the hotel accommodations, but let her/him know that you're out of pocket for an additional
$XXXX.XX

When you discuss your needs do so in person, and present a list of your EXTRA expenses.

Be willing to compromise, because a half a pie is better than no pie.

if they do not agree do I have good grounds for a civil suit of some sort?

You are free to sue anyone you wish.

Yes, you can bring a small claims lawsuit.

If you do, prepare for some blowback, even if you lose.

Try to negotiate first, and avoid making any threats.
 
If your lease provides for tenancy starting on 8/20, then the landlord is in breach for not delivering, so you are legally entitled to damages resulting from the breach.

I'm not completely understanding the days off thing since you now don't need to take days off to move on the 20th.

As far as food, what were you planning on doing if you did move in as planned? Food isn't part of the rental, so you'd have had to buy food either way. If, at the end of the hotel stay, you think you spent more than you otherwise would have spent, you can ask for that and probably should get it if it's reasonable.

Is the landlord still going to charge you the $600 for August? If not, that's money you're saving. If so, you're getting lodging at the hotel, so there's nothing there.

I think any storage charges you reasonably incur should be reimbursed. Just make sure the landlord knows about them in advance because he/she/it may have other options available.
 
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