TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Sue [MO]) Sep 16, 2013 7:32 AM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Ellen [ME]) Sep 16, 2013 7:45 AM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Roy [AL]) Sep 16, 2013 7:50 AM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by S i d [MO]) Sep 16, 2013 8:21 AM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Sue [MO]) Sep 16, 2013 8:42 AM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by S i d [MO]) Sep 16, 2013 9:08 AM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Scott [TX]) Sep 16, 2013 10:36 AM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Kyle [IN]) Sep 16, 2013 12:02 PM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Gruvin [TX]) Sep 16, 2013 12:25 PM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Nicole [PA]) Sep 16, 2013 2:26 PM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by S i d [MO]) Sep 16, 2013 3:22 PM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by RB [MI]) Sep 16, 2013 5:12 PM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by mike [MO]) Sep 16, 2013 6:09 PM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Alex [IL]) Sep 16, 2013 9:58 PM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by V [OH]) Sep 17, 2013 5:31 AM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by LL in [IN]) Sep 17, 2013 7:57 AM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Kay [KS]) Sep 17, 2013 1:08 PM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by LiveTheDream [AZ]) Sep 17, 2013 9:00 PM
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Sue [MO]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 7:32 AM Message:
State Specific Question About: MISSOURI (MO)
A long-term tenant of mine had his (newish) girlfriend and her two kids moved in a couple of months ago. I ok'd it verbally, she was never added to his lease.
Tenant moved to get away from her and she and her kids stayed. I asked her to move, she said she would, I gave her 30 days, she said ok. Nothing in writing.
30 days is up, she's still there. I pay all utilities. I told her 9am the men would be there to put her stuff in driveway.
Does she have any legal right to be there?
Any advice, comments, etc?
I need a little handholding and probably deserve a good scolding too... : --97.85.xxx.xx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Ellen [ME]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 7:45 AM Message:
Uh, don't think you can do that. Still gotta go through the eviction process.
Was the rent paid? If not, evict for nonpayment of rent. Be sure to include those named on the lease and include "all other occupants." --70.16.xx.xxx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Roy [AL]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 7:50 AM Message:
Whether you like it or not, you have an oral agreement with this lady to live in your house. You once gave her oral permission to live there and that does give her some legal leg to stand on. I think this is what is called a Tenant at Will.
I would play it safe and start the legal eviction process. --69.244.xx.xx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by S i d [MO]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 8:21 AM Message:
Here's the scolding. By allowing this girl and her kids to move in you made a really dumb mistake. She will never pay you and will sit on her duff until she is evicted. That was mistake # 1.
Mistake # 2 was giving her a 30-day notice verbally that had no teeth in it. Once you became aware that he was gone, that should have been the "ring ring" from your clue phone giving you a call to say "no more rent will be paid...ever...period". File to evict the boyfriend and et all TODAY. No, not tomorrow, TODAY. And use a competent attorney...more on that below.
Mistake # 3 is making threats you can't back up legally. The "men who will move her stuff into the driveway" will be breaking the law via something called constructive eviction. Here's a fairly decent definition from legal-dictionary.com:
"constructive eviction n. when the landlord does not go through a legal eviction of a tenant, but takes steps which keep the tenant from continuing to live in the premises. This could include changing the locks, turning off the drinking water, blocking the driveway, yelling at the tenant all the time, or nailing the door shut" I'll add on to this...throwing stuff on the curb regardless of who owns it. You CANNOT do this. So please DON'T. You must file eviction, go to court, and get a judge's permission to take your property back by forceful means if necessary or you will get your butt sued off and will owe some deadbeat thousands of dollars because you illegally threw his 65 inch plasma TV (which didn't exist) and his priceless Picasso (which also didn't exist) in the road and it got stolen. Once this tenant gets whiff of what you've done, he will sue you for as much money as he thinks he can get, and he will probably WIN at least something.
No more empty threats, no more communication with this person (email, phone, text, snail mail, or otherwise), call an attorney who knows what they're doing today, because--no offense, just stating the truth--you have no clue what you're doing. Screwing this up can/will cost you a ton. Please, please, please get a local, experienced, land lord tenant attorney on the phone TODAY.
Now here's the hand holding: we've all been inexperienced and done dumb things before. That's okay. You've learned some valuable lessons. Just realize that this one has the potential to harm you greatly if done incorrectly. I've outlined the steps above to get this resolved as quickly as possible without breaking the law. Just do it and you'll be OK. Put emotion on the top shelf where you can't see it and in the meantime drink a frosty adult beverage. That solves a lot of these kinds of issues. --108.250.xxx.xxx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Sue [MO]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 8:42 AM Message:
Thanks all, I knew I should have given written notice. She was so grateful for 30 days , I think she was expecting 2weeks notice.
I will not remove her stuff, the doors or shut off the utilities, or communicate with her, except posting written notice to vacate
I will start eviction process.
Is she liable for any past rent or leagle/court fees, or is just the tenant named on the lease?
Think I'll subsitute the adult drink with a three-scoop-turtle sundae
Thanks so very much for the hand-holding advice - the group is the best
Cheers
Sue --97.85.xxx.xx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by S i d [MO]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 9:08 AM Message:
If she's not on the contract/lease, it is very doubtful you can convince a judge she is liable for any rent, even though she's directly benefiting from her boyfriend picking your pocket. That said, it never hurts to ask. The judge probably will tell you "no" in which case you're no worse off than you are today.
You might even consider offering "cash for keys" to get her to move out in the next 5 days. It goes like this: "Hey Jenny, I know your ex moved out and left you with no way to pay for the rent. That's too bad, because now I have to evict him and you. You'll have an eviction on your record, even though it's really his fault all of this is happening. Tell you what. If I were to give you $200 cash in hand on Friday, would you be able to have all your stuff out of here? I won't even ask you to clean. I just need you to have everything out of here, including anything that belongs to him, give me the keys, and allow me in to take pictures of the place. We'll sign a short note explaining that you took everything out and gave me all of the keys. I'll promise not to come after you for any money owed (you probably can't anyway, but why make that a major sticking point?) and I'll see if I can get him to just sign a note for the balance due. I can't give you any money though until you're out."
See what she says. If she refuses, you're done communicating with her as we discussed above.
If she accepts, you get your place back and can start cleaning and making repairs. Only pay once she's out, all the stuff is gone (some trash will remain, but that's a given), keys are in hand, and you and a witness have gone thru and taken pictures of the abandoned unit. This may save you weeks of lost rent, which is more expensive than a meager $200. It's galling, I know, to offer thieves $$$ for what they should do voluntarily, but in this case it's a win-win for you and her. She might be too dumb to accept, in which case just evict.
Turtle sundae is acceptable. Anything cold and delicious works. --108.250.xxx.xxx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Scott [TX]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 10:36 AM Message:
As others have said above, you are evicting those on the lease, "... and all other occupants". All those who are on the lease, owe you rent. Evict and get a judgement against THEM (hopefully they're collectable). --128.157.xxx.xx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Kyle [IN]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 12:02 PM Message:
If you know her name, I would list her on the court docs. My judge would allow a judgment against her for any rent and damages, but not any late fees or other charges which are in the lease. If you do not know her name, list Jane Doe or all others to make sure you still get possession, then get a judgment against him. --50.129.xx.xxx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Gruvin [TX]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 12:25 PM Message:
go for the rent, if the court says they are a legal tenant by means of oral agreement then they are legally responsible for rent owed based on the oral agreement.
Scolding: no more oral rental agreements or warnings! rent agreements in writing, all notices in writing, repair requests in writing, etc... --99.126.xx.xx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Nicole [PA]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 2:26 PM Message:
I don't know Sid ... once she's gone, the original guy may want to come back ... I wouldn't assume that I have possession unless I had something in writing from both of them. --72.95.xx.xx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by S i d [MO]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 3:22 PM Message:
That's what the keys and pictures are for, Nicole. It offers convincing evidence of abandonment when the unit is empty of all personal possessions and keys are handed over.
What's he going to tell the judge? "Uh, your honor, I sort of left my girlfriend there for 2 months, didn't pay any rent, and she took all my stuff with her...so it's the land lord's fault." REALLY?
Anyone who is nervous about using this approach is encouraged to contact their lawyer. I am not a lawyer nor do I ever represent that my advice and opinions are substitute for competent legal counsel. No warranties or guarantees are expressed or implied as being worth a hill of beans, or even a single bean. --108.250.xxx.xxx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by RB [MI]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 5:12 PM Message:
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by mike [MO]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 6:09 PM Message:
file with all names of those on the lease and those living there including the past boyfriend. include ALL past due and late fees and legal fees as specified in the lease. Did you terminate the lease with previous tenant? I hope not. --108.80.xxx.xxx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Alex [IL]) Posted on: Sep 16, 2013 9:58 PM Message:
Reason why I always have 5 day nonpayment with added person.... all unknown occupants...
--24.245.xx.xxx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by V [OH]) Posted on: Sep 17, 2013 5:31 AM Message:
List the adult occupants on the paperwork, my area charges extra for each extra service. Follow your local and state laws to avoid expensive troubles. --75.94.xxx.xxx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by LL in [IN]) Posted on: Sep 17, 2013 7:57 AM Message:
This is why I hate live-ins. This happens all the time. --50.129.x.xxx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by Kay [KS]) Posted on: Sep 17, 2013 1:08 PM Message:
For future situations like this: I always make it very clear to tenant moving in that if anyone else wants to move in during the term of the Lease, they must go through a background check and be approved by Management. My lease states that Tenant must pay a daily rent rate for any guest staying at the property more than 5 days. That rate is at least equal to the monthly rate divided by 30. Of course, the lease also states that the Tenant is responsible for the conduct of all guests. Finally, I have an abandonment clause in the lease, stating that if I Tenant cannot be reached by Management after "X" amount of days, after the monthly rent is due, Tenant agrees that Management may assume the unit has been abandoned and that the Lease has been terminated. --64.151.xx.xx |
TenantMovedLeftGirlfriend (by LiveTheDream [AZ]) Posted on: Sep 17, 2013 9:00 PM Message:
What Sid and the others said. Also on your eviction you name the original tenant and "Does 1-20" (hopefully there's not more than 20...).
The reason for this is that you evict the leaseholder AND any unnamed occupants. IF they want to contest the eviction they have to "Answer" and add their name to the case. Most illegal tenants are unwilling to do this. --24.121.xx.xx |
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