How can I get these people out of my house and off of my property?
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How can I get these people out of my house and off of my property?
About 12 years ago, I was gifted this property by the woman with whom I had lived here with for many years. She passed away 9 years ago and then 7 years later, her daughter and son-in-law showed up and eased their way into my house. Now they are demanding that I sign the property over to them because as far as they are concerned, the property should have became theirs upon her mother’s passing. I’m fed up. They are trying to take over my property. They have even gone as far as to turn people away that come to visit me when I’m not home telling them that I do not own the property anymore and to stay away. I have asked them to leave but they are dead set on not going anywhere. They have even told me that I should do the right thing and leave
so that they can have the property that should be rightfully theirs. What can I do? It feels like a hostile takeover of my home and land. I have lived here for 23 years.
Asked on July 27, 2019 under Real Estate Law, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 4 years ago | Contributor
You can remove them with a legal action (lawsuit) for "ejectment," which is basically "eviction for non-tenants," or how you remove people who are guests in your home but not rent-paying tenants. Anyone who is not an owner and not a rent paying tenant is a guest, even if they have been there for years. A guest has no right to remain once the owner decides its time for them to go. If the guest will not leave after receiving reasonable written notice (e.g. one month's written notice; send it some way or ways you can prove delivery), you can file an ejectment lawsuit (your state may have a different name for it) to get a court order removing them.
Your legal right to remove them is, based on what you write, clear, but the legal steps to do so are "technical" in that a minor error can force you to start over. Hire a lawyer to help you from the beginning (sending them proper notice to leave) to end (enforcing the court order to remove them). Even though this is not a typical tenant eviction, a landlord-tenant should know how to do this and would be your first choice of type of lawyer to help you.
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