A landlord in Golders Green, London, was always careful to lease his apartments to people he trusted would pay rent. If an applicant appeared untrustworthy, he would find an excuse not to rent it to him. But there was a time, ten to twenty years ago, when there were many vacancies in the Golders Green area, and he realized that he couldn't be too picky. If he found a potential tenant, he accepted him, even if he suspected he might not pay.
At least with one of his tenants, his fears materialized, and the tenant refused to pay rent. The landlord summoned him to court, but he feared he would lose the case because the courts in England favor the tenants over the landlord. The judge asked the tenant why he hadn’t paid the rent. He replied, "He leased me a deficient apartment. The heating and air conditioning don’t work, and the plumbing and electricity are also faulty. I asked the landlord numerous times to fix these problems, but my requests fell on deaf ears. I had to pay tradesmen to come fix my apartment. So, why should I pay the rent, too?"
The landlord feared he would lose the case because he had no proof with which to disprove the tenant’s claims. However, the judge asked the tenant, "Did you pay at least one month’s rent? If you didn't even pay the first month, that proves you never intended to pay." He hadn’t paid even the first month, so the judge ordered him to pay up entirely.
Reb Elchanan Halprin zt'l of Radumishla told this story and said it is a lesson in kabbalos tovos. Sometimes people have excuses why they didn't keep their kabbalos. But the Heavenly court will ask, "Did you keep your kabbalah at least once? Did you begin the year adhering to the kabbalos you took on? If you didn't even start with your kabbalos, that shows you weren't serious and never truly intended to keep them."
