My landlord says that I have underpaid my rent. Each check written for monthly rent has included, in the memo section, states paid in full ,...

Question

My landlord says that I have underpaid my rent. Each check written for monthly rent has included, in the memo section, states paid in full ,(e.g.; Jan in full , Feb in full ,etc. etc.) Since the landlord accepted and cashed said checks, with the memo notation; do I owe monies?

Answer

Yes, if you have actually underpaid your rent. In most states the use of marginal notes on checks, such as "Paid In Full" or "Payment in Full", when the payment is actually less than what is due will be ignored if there is litigation regarding the underpayment. So, if you have actually been underpaying your rent, including this language usually accomplishes nothing, and it may come back to haunt you as being interpreted as an attempt to defraud your landlord. On the other hand, if you can show that you have actually paid what you owed, no harm, no foul.