Eviction Quesion
hi i own a duplex and rent out the lower unit. I rented the unit to 3 friends and 2 of them left because the third is insane.
now the last tenant cannot pay me the full portion of rent and also he cant pay for the utilities and is now stealing power from my fuse panel in the basement and rerouted the gas line.
he was a friend and i was going to write a new lease with the utiilities included in rent but i havent gotten any money at all and i know he doesnt have it..
i have to evict
now when i submit him the notice to quit can i pull the jumper wires on his fuse panel linked to my panel and rerout the gas line. keep in mind that the tenant was responsable for his own utilities at the begining and is now stealing from me.
any advice.
also i f i disconnect the power and gas i was going to lock him out of the basement so he cannont resupply power .
and commnets would be greatly apppreciated.
thanks.
mike
Are the two other people on the lease? Does his lease give him rights to the basement?
You should be VERY careful with changing the utilities! I'm not sure about your state, but in Minnesota it is a jailable crime to tamper with the utilities!
Call out the electric service and the gas company and have them tell you the best way to proceed - the last thing you need is to waste time.
Plus, when they make their reports of the crime; their reports will help you in your eviction proceedings. File the eviction ASAP and get ready.
you have theft of services going on you should contact the local police dept have them come out and do a report also you should take pictures of the theft that is going on. You need to do this at once with the tampering of gas and electric and if there is a fire you may not be able to collect on insurance due to the fact you new of the condition.
It is most likely that your tenant will be arrested for this theft which also will make your case easier to get him evicted.