HELP! Need advise with this roommate situation

[Supermandalee]

My roommate and I moved into our 2 bedroom apartment on February 1, 2008. At that time, we made a verbal agreement that every bill regarding the unit will be split in half. My roommate recently decided, by her own choice, to begin residing with another friend. At this point she is refusing to pay the utility bills and rent for the remainder of our lease. I would like her to either pay her half, or atleast compensate me for all of the extra costs that I am incurring do to her breaking our verbal agreement. There are two months left on our lease. If I have her evicted through my apartment leasing office, and she does not vacate her property within 5 days (in which she will owe arrears to me), am I able to change the locks? Also, if I do so, may I hold her property for 60 days until full payment is received then sell the items if she does not pay?

When should I take her to small claims court if she refuses to compensate me for all of these extra costs? Oh, also, the utility bill is in her name, but I have found it in my best interest to pay my half even if she decides to have teh utilities shut off. I will get a receipt for small claims court showing that I still attempted to stick to the terms of our agreement.

 

[Michael Wechsler]

It would seem you can start eviction proceedings but you'll have to do it in the manner prescribed by your state, which we don't know (the field you ignored regarding jurisdiction in the new post form.) I would not change the locks and hold property or you might have your own problems. Yes, you can go to small claims court to collect. If she is refusing to pay the utilities bill then you've got a decision to make regarding how to handle it. My thought is that you're probably best off in small claims since going to landlord tenant court will take too long and the process will be too costly. Make sure to protect yourself by sending her written notice, certified mail and return receipt requested. Yes, I know she lives in your home but you want to provide proof of this breach of your agreement to the judge, in order to expedite your judgment. Best of luck to you and, in the future, make sure to get a written agreement.