How doI evict anillegal roommate?
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How doI evict anillegal roommate?
My roommate and I let a friend stay in a room to help him out as long as he helped pay the bills. Subletting. Things have gone south due to his living habits (he is filthy and always late paying money owed, on top of safety and noise issues). We decided to give him 30 days notice. Now he’s refusing to leave. He’s been here since October (4 months) and we just gave him a verbal 30 days. What can we do to make him leave legally? We don’t even want any money; we just want him gone at this point while he threatens to call our landlord to inform them of the illegal subletting.
Asked on February 3, 2011 under Real Estate Law, Idaho
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
Since your friend paid you (albeit late), then you in effect are his landlord. Since you have the legal right to occupy the premises, you can file an unlawful detainer action (i.e. eviction proceeding). This means however that you will have to comply with all legal requirements in order to get him lawfully removed. Typically this starts with written notice of 30 or so days. You will then file a suit in court and if an unlawful detainer is granted, this person will either have to leave the premises by the date stipulated or you can have the sheriff remove him, forcibly if necessary. In the meantime do not undertake any "self-help" measures such as changing the locks, etc. This will work against you. What you should do now is to contact a tenant's right organization or real estate attorney. They can advise you of the correct way in which to go about this in ID; you can also contactthe local court and see if they have a pamphlet/website that gives this information.
Note: As to this issue of the illegal sublet, I'm afraid that this is something that you will have to work out directly with your landlord. The fact is that this person is an illegal tenant so you may well find yourself on the wrong end of an eviction. Check on this.
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
If he doesn't have a written lease, then he is a month to month tenant and 30 days notice is sufficient. If he has not left after that notice, you may evict him, but must do so through the courts. Contract you local courts (municipal or county), either in person (go to the clerk's office) or online (if they have a website). You should be able to get the forms, instructions, explanation of the process, timeline, and fees, etc. for eviction. Essentially, you'll first send a formal notice to leave (Notice to Quit); if he still doesn't leave, you file a summons and complaint for eviction. There will be a trial date, but the trial in a matter like this is very short and informal; if you've given a month-to-month tenant notice and he still hasn't left, you'll be given possession of the apartment and he'll have to go.
The important things to remember: (1) don't accept rent after you tell him to get out; (2) don't lock him out yourself--you have to go through the courts.
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