Anthony Quinn Caldwell Tony Caldwell, Tony C - Serious Lease Violations - Skipped Out Not Paying Rent And Utilities - Possible Felony Theft - Bad Tennant Risk - Cleveland Ohio

It started out fine. I leased a furnished 3-bedroom home w/attached garage for $800/mo. The going rate for a home like this is $1100/mo.  The lease agreement included all of the normal stuff like upkeep and yard maintenance was renters responsibility and occupancy was limited to Him and his minor son.  Visitors could stay no more than 9 days in a 6 month period. Anthony showed an interest in purchasing the home so a clause was included guaranteeing a full refund of all paid rent in a 12 month period (not to exceed $9600) if he decided to purchase the home.  Not a bad deal, huh?

However, as time progressed things started to deteriorate. Rent was paid at or beyond the due date. Late payments became normal. Yard maintence became very sporadic and included shoddy lawn mowing while the rest of the yard was neglected. The overall outdoor appearance became uglier. To get Anthony to do anything beyond the grass resulted in backlash. His opinion that anything beyond mowing was "landscaping" which was not his responsibility.  The appearance of the driveway also suffered.  He along with his lady friend had several clunkers that all seemed to leak oil.  Puddles were constantly found on the drive even after several attempts to have oil leakers be parked on the street. 

Inside the home became progressively more cluttered somewhat like a packrat lived there. Anthony stated that he emptied out storage units so he didn't have to pay them anymore.  So now the house was a storage facility for junk that, in my opinion, if discarded would have been easily replaced with the money saved by not having to rent a storage unit in the first place.  Next came the attached garage filling up with what I would refer to as more junk.  No more storing a vehicle in this nice finished heated garage, just stuff now.

Inside the home became progressively dirtier. Areas around the bathtub and toilet got funky.  The tub and surround had black gookie stuff clinging to it that was completely disgusting.  A container of baby wipes frequented the toilet top which had to be addressed.  According to Anthony, They were never used and he was the only person who used the toilet. Ha! The carpeting became another issue.  Preserving the carpet was a top priority but not with Anthony.  It became apparent that Anthony didn't remove his shoes and was tracking filth from the garage into the carpeted areas.  He explained that cleaning the carpet was his preference over removing shoes.  Although he went throught the motions of using his store bought carpet cleaning machine, he used some unknown cleaner he aquired from his job he had cleaning.  The soap residue cause matting of the carpet and now after me doing 3 separate cleanings on a test area, the water still looks like coffee.  YUCK!  I am considering hiring a professional at this point.

Anthony entertained several lady friends over the duration of the lease. However, he had one that frequently stayed over the weekends and gradually on a daily basis.  As a result, the nine day limit had been exceeded and the lease agreement had been violated. 

I suggested that he move the regular lady friend into the home for an additional $100 a month. However, he did not want to have here living there because he would not have the house to himself to entertain his other lady friends. 

As time progressed rent and utility payments got way behind.  Anthony on several occations referred to himself as a "grown man". A grown man needs to work hard and support his family and not complain that his job is hard or don't pay good.  Quitting jobs seemed like one of his favorite past times.  I suggested several jobs that he could apply for where they were desparate for hirees like Amazon, RTA, USPS to name a few.  I got several stupid excuses why they were unacceptable work choices. 

At the end of the lease, Anthony made a push to try to catch up a little thinking that he could continue living there on a month to month basis.  However, after finding out that he would have to be completely cought up and a new lease would have to be signed, he stopped paying altogether.  Knowing that he cannot continue to live there, he began the arduous duty of moving out all of that stuff.  Nearing the very end, I asked him when he could pay his rent and utility arrears.  Anthony laughed out loud.  I said I didn't think it was funny.  Anthony said that he has to pay his debt and he was going to.

I got a few more presents before he left the property. Anthony blew up the bathroom so bad we had to leave for a couple hours and when we came back it still stunk. The yard had not been attended to for months and required me to hire someone to clean it up.  Anthony said that it's too cold for him to do it as he watched it being done.  WOW! With his last load packed up he had to dig through it a retreive my expensive push broom he was stealing.  Before he left for the last time he stated that he thought is was his.  I think he's storing some of his stuff at his Moms over on Saint John. Anthony now never answers his phone calls, texts, emails or Zelle requests to pay what he owes.  

In the state of Ohio if that amount exceeds $1000 it is considered theft and is a fifth degree felony charge.  The bail amount after indictment is generally $2500.

Anthony please be a "grown man" and start paying back even small installments like you promised so I won't proceed with legal action.  I intend to put all court docket info and links to it here.

To be continued...