Joint judgment with former roommate , trying to negotiate settlement
landlord tenant attorney California Aug 10, 2026
Location: California I’m looking for general legal advice regarding a California landlord-tenant/judgment situation. My former roommate and I were jointly named on a lease for an apartment in Los Angeles. After I was laid off, we fell behind on the rent and the situation ultimately resulted in a joint judgment of approximately $38,000. The settlement agreement states that the judgment will not be sent to collections as long as both parties agree to and maintain a payment plan. My former roommate has been unresponsive to the property management company for several months and has stated in writing that she does not believe she should be responsible for paying the judgment. Initially, I tried to take responsibility for resolving the situation myself. I proposed an individual payment plan and was willing to take on the full balance because I wanted to resolve the matter rather than continue dealing with the situation. However, I have since realized that the remaining balance is beyond what I can realistically afford. Despite being in a relatively low-income position, I have continued making payments toward the judgment while actively applying for salaried positions that would allow me to pay more. I wanted to demonstrate that I was making a genuine effort to resolve the debt and pay what I could. I have now reached a point where I am over my head financially. The property management company, which is a large property development/management company, has rejected my proposed payment arrangement and is seeking the remaining balance from me. The apartment has also since been re-rented. I am not trying to avoid the judgment or dispute the original eviction. My goal is to negotiate a reasonable settlement or payment arrangement that reflects what I can realistically afford and resolve the matter before it goes to collections. My questions are: Can the property management company require me to pay the entire remaining joint judgment if the other defendant refuses to cooperate? Does the fact that the apartment has since been re-rented have any relevance to the amount owed? Does my having voluntarily offered to take responsibility for the entire balance affect my legal position in any way? Is there anything I should be careful about when negotiating a settlement directly with the property management company? Would an attorney typically be able to negotiate a settlement of an existing judgment like this? Are there any California-specific resources or legal issues I should look into before agreeing to anything? I’m primarily looking for general information about my rights and options, not advice on how to avoid paying the judgment.
