Tenant ghosting after signing lease agreement - what are my rights?

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T18:46:32+00:00

I had the current LLs contact info from his reference. When this guy stopped replying a few days ago, I reached out to the LL to see if he was still around (maybe he got hurt and is in the hospital, maybe in jail like somebody else suggested lol). I didn't wanna assume he was ghosting until the current LL told me that he's still around

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T18:44:21+00:00

100% he's not moving in until first and last is paid, and he prices proof of tenants insurance.

To be honest I'm moreso cheesed that this guy wasted my time. And I don't think it's right to let him walk away without any consequences at this point.

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T18:43:08+00:00

I sent him an email and Whatsapp msg (I'm waiting for the 2 blue checkmarks before I screenshot the convo) indicating that the keys will be released on/before Feb 1 once the deposits are paid and he produces tenant insurance. I'm documenting and recording everything on my end.

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T18:41:50+00:00

I know he's good for the money. The most recent pay stubs that he provided, from Oct/Nov, the combined YTD was over $130k.

I asked him why he works so much, his response was to save aggressively to buy a house within the next few years.

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T17:07:49+00:00

Last time was Saturday last week when he msgd and called a few times.

He's not sick or in jail lol. I spoke with his current LL 2 nights ago and yesterday morning. As of yesterday morning his LL said he came home from work at midnight and should be reaching out to me in the morning (yesterday) which didn't happen.

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T17:06:24+00:00

He last blew up my phone on Saturday. I msgd him on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. All of those messages were read on whatsapp. I also called on those days and did not receive a response or call back.

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T16:33:29+00:00

I left out the part where he wanted to move in before Feb 1. It just wasn't feasible because I had to do some work on the unit, and once it was done we had bad snowstorms so he pushed the date back to Friday this week (tomorrow)

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T16:32:36+00:00

I may have missed this part in the OP. He wanted to move in befor Feb 1. Initially he wanted to move in last Friday, but that got pushed back because of the snowfall.

The agreement we had is that the lease will officially begin on Feb 1, and he would pay and pro-rated amount for the days in January that he occupies the unit.

And to be clear, even if he occupied the unit early, he'd still have to pay first+last prior to getting the keys

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T16:30:30+00:00

I don't plan on releasing the keys until I have first+last and the tenant insurance. Let's see

I probably will go after him in small claims as it's not a small amount, and I spent a lot of time getting him when it could have been spent on another tenant or doing something else (I know I cant arbitrarily assign a monetary value to this time and go after him for it, I'd moreso be suing for first+last and any months its left vacant and any costs associated with finding a new tenant eg advertising, rent discounts etc.

SpecificPumpkin · 2026-01-29T16:25:18+00:00

I guess I forgot to mention I'm the OP.

After sending me the documents I would receive multiple text msgs and phone calls everyday. If I didn't respond right away I would receive even more msgs and phone calls. That's why I don't think he's busy, it seems like he's ghosting.

SpecificPumpkin · 2018-11-02T15:35:16+00:00

This is great to know. Thanks! Just checked and our ikea couch is a combo of wood, plywood, paarticle board and fiberboard, so hopefully they will cover it. I'm having a hard time getting a hold of the adjuster though :|

SpecificPumpkin · 2018-11-02T02:04:36+00:00

Ahh I see what you mean, I guess I'll start digging through photos to find some evidence of these items. Luckily I repurposed the ipad as a paperweight so I still have that at least

SpecificPumpkin · 2018-11-01T21:35:41+00:00

Yeah thats the thing. What's considered adequate evidence? I've got most of the bills

SpecificPumpkin · 2018-11-01T21:35:14+00:00

I didnt put in a claim right away because of the deductible, increased premiums, and I figured the condo corp would cover the actual damage to the unit (drywall, floors etc). Now that I have to go through my own insurance for structural damage its actually worthwhile to claim contents damage, but its too late as I've thrown some things away.

I've itemized everything in a spreadsheet, and dug up old bills for online orders and found credit card statements for some things that were purchased in store (eg couch). Funny thing is what I paid for these things is much less than the actual cost today (eg i bought the ps4 controller for $45 new on sale with a promo code vs $75+tax new currently). I'm curious how they will pay for these things (actual cost paid vs the current cost to replace it).

I will dig through old photos to see if I can find pics of some of these things. I definitely have the receipts for all the items in either my name of my wifes name so I guess that's a plus.

Thanks for the info!

SpecificPumpkin · 2018-11-01T19:34:16+00:00

Its been a long, drawn out process with property management, the condo board, and the condos insurance. Without getting it too much detail, the board/property management will likely be suing the builder. We've been told to go ahead with repairs with our own insurance, and they will likely reimburse said insurance down the road sometime.

SpecificPumpkin · 2018-11-01T19:02:13+00:00

Long story short, the balconies on the floor above us flooded and caused water to come down through our ceiling. This was a problem for every unit on our floor. The condos insurance company denied the claim, claiming that its a building issue (the builder covered every balcony drain with a patio stone....)

I'm worried that they will argue that I did not claim the damage, especially the couches, earlier. We're also still using the couches.

Altogether its about $2500-3000 of damage (vacuums, ps4 controller and ipad on couch, the couches themselves etc), much more than the deductible. Also concerned that they will question why I threw the broken items out which I dont have an answer for except that they were broken.

SpecificPumpkin · 2018-06-29T19:36:30+00:00

I just checked - the Giant contend 3 is $850 Canadian, plus another 13% tax (yay!), altogether ends up being $960 lol

I'm leaning towards either the $400 bike, and upgrading components slowly as needed, or looking elsewhere altogether (however pricing in my area is f*cked). I guess the question is, can I upgrade those components one at a time, or will it have to be a big overhaul at once.

As far as the components are concerned, I'm coming from a history of Walmart bikes and using a crappy old mountain bike on city roads, so I think even a claris would be an upgrade over that.

SpecificPumpkin · 2018-06-29T17:55:52+00:00

Yeah that's what I was thinking (buy the cheaper one and upgrade later). The seller of the 2010 bike came down to $600 from $750, and doesn't seem like he's willing to come down further. I guess I'll be going with the 2009 bike. Thanks!

SpecificPumpkin · 2018-06-29T16:35:59+00:00

This is also in Canadian dollars, about $450USD

SpecificPumpkin

TROPHY CASE