First Possible Eviction
my tenants signed a year lease in may of 2004,, all was fine till rent came due for august 1.... I got their chk and it bounced.. I notified them.. and this engaged couple told me that the girl wrote the chk but the guy took $ out without her knowing so it bounced.. I advised them of all fees.. and was to get paid in full this friday. When I called their I got word that the girl had moved out and hasnt talked to her fiancee for days. They both signed the lease and Im not sure the first step as to how I should get them out ... I have drove over there a few times,, nobody answers ..... so i go in and all the girls stuff is gone and only his stuff is there but hes no where to be found... What you you all suggest my next step be
Send a certified mail letter saying that they are being evicted - give them their notice, 30 days) and say they have to be out by then. File with the courts - call the municipality and ask them how to file an eviction. Get yourself an eviction lawyer.
Good Luck!
[addsig]
Well Matty's last bit of advice is correct at least.
Eviction law varries widely from state to state and even between jurisdictions within the state.
Best is if you can find the boyfriend and get him to vacate voluntarily.
since they havnt paid for aug rent... I still have to give them 30 dys notice if they refuse to leave voluntarily right?
First of all, what are you doing going into their apartment without their consent? Did you give them advance warning you were going to enter the place? Is this advance warning documented? If not and someone sees you doing it, you've just committed a crime and set yourself up for a lawsuit.
As for evictions, definitely check with a local attorney. Every state is different. In many states, you only need to give them a 3 or 5-day notice before initiating eviction proceedings.
Just bear this in mind. Most courts are tenant friendly. Landlords can certainly still get evictions and judgments, but you need to have everything properly documented, and not be seen violating the law yourself. If it just ends up being your word against theirs, you'll loose.
Hey,
By entering their property without their permission, you actually are guilty of several crimes AND could be sued. It could also cause all kinds of problems with trying to evict them. Luckily you did not get caught!
Go to an attorney; not to be mean, but you do not know what you are doing.
thanks for replies,,,, I actually did talk to the fiance and she told me she had moved out but she had her phone calls forwarded to where she was staying.. Also, I did let her know that I would be going over there since the guy living there cant be reached by phone. So no laws were broken. She still signed her name to the lease and just bc she had a little fight with her man doesnt prevent me from notifying her that Im going over to the property to check the condition and find out whats going on. Let me know if that is a mistake but I thought I have the right to do that? thanks
Hi. I'm in Columbus, Ohio. The first thing you have to do is give them a three day notice. On the fourth business day (if they haven't paid you in full) go to the courthouse and file for an eviction. You can't file an eviction without first giving them a three day notice to vacate.
thanks. will do
Sorry...I forgot to say one thing. You can give them a notice of any length, as long as it's at least three days. You can't give them a one or two day notice. So, you can give them a 30 day notice if you wish, but why give them that much time. That's all the longer it'll take to get them out.
Your lease may state a longer period of notification than the minimum the state requires. I ran into that just last month. I used one of those canned form leases supposed to be state specific. Well it allowed them SEVEN days and Texas law only requires THREE days. I had to wait 7 days before filing!!! The good news it scared hell of them and they actually paid on the 7th day!! All my leases from now on will say THREE days. If your lease says nothing at all on the subject then the State law of 3 days applies.
There have been enough replies to your topic about this but I just want to make usre, for your sake, that you get the point. The amount of days your notification allows them to stay in the rental is state specific, here in Louisville KY for example, I have a tenant that I am currently evicting, but I haad to give them 7 days notice, They will be out on the first because I choose to give them thirty days as long as they paid for the month (the eviction is for threatening and not non-payment)
Also, even though you told them that you were going to inspect the property, you still want to document it, because the first reply is right, if it is not documented then it becomes your word against theirs and as the tenants courets tend to favor them.
thanks for all replies. I will put the 3 day notice up asap