Text messages for a landlord or tenant dispute

Housing disputes are usually decided on a paper trail: who asked for what, when, and what was promised in reply. Text messages are where that trail lives. The problem is that a phone full of screenshots is not a document anyone can file, forward to a housing officer or attach to a small-claims form.

ThreadProof lays those screenshots out as one PDF with a cover page naming both parties and the property, the messages in date order, a declaration and a redaction log. It runs in your browser, so tenancy details and photographs of your home are never uploaded anywhere.

Start with one screenshot. It stays on your device and you will see the first page in seconds.

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What to include from a repair thread

Start at the first report of the problem, not at the argument. The useful sequence is: the report, each follow-up you sent, every reply or absence of reply, any promise about timing or cost, and the resolution or lack of one. Screenshots of an unanswered message are worth including, because the silence is the point.

If a landlord agreed to a deduction, a credit or a repair by a date, capture the exact message that says so, and capture your confirmation of it. A two-message pair where one party states the agreement and the other says yes is far more useful than a paraphrase.

  • First report of the fault, with the date visible
  • Every follow-up and every reply
  • Any agreement about cost, deduction or timing
  • Receipts referenced in the thread
  • The final exchange, including refusals

Naming the parties and the property

On the cover page use the names as they appear on the tenancy agreement, and put the unit or address in the case title field. If the messages come from a letting agent rather than the owner, name the agent and say so in the declaration. A housing board reading fifty complaints a week should be able to tell in one line whose messages these are.

Redacting what does not belong

Threads about a property often contain a neighbour's number, a contractor's personal mobile or a child's name. Black those out. ThreadProof burns the boxes into the image and writes each one into a redaction log with a reason, so nothing looks quietly removed.

Deadlines

Housing complaints and small claims both run on dates. Set the date range on the cover page so the period in dispute is obvious, and export well before your filing deadline so there is time to fix a rejected upload. The Email profile keeps the file small enough for portals that cap attachments.

ThreadProof formats documents and is not a law firm. Nothing here is legal advice, and no representation is made about how a board, court or landlord will treat your document.

Questions people ask

Can I include photographs of the damage?
Yes. Any image on your device can be imported alongside the message screenshots and will be numbered in the same sequence.
The landlord replied on WhatsApp, not SMS.
Set the platform on the Label tab. WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram and iMessage are all supported, and the platform is printed on the cover page.
Do I have to redact my own address?
Usually not, since the property is the subject of the dispute, but you can redact anything you choose and it will be listed with a reason.
What does it cost and can I cancel?
Personal is $9 per month or $79 per year. A one-time Case Pass is $24 for 90 days. Professional is $49 per month or $439 per year. Cancel anytime from your Account page in two taps; access continues to the end of the period you paid for. Every charge has a 14-day money-back policy: see the policy at /refunds.

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ThreadProof formats documents. It is not a law firm and does not give legal advice.

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