Landlords can find themselves in sticky legal situations with tenants when it comes to their long-term guests. Long-term guests can be a bit of a gray area for property owners and managers. You may have written in the lease that a tenant can have guests, only to find they bent the rules a bit and have invited their friend to stay for months on end. If your building is on a shared utilities plan, this extra person can weigh heavily on your finances. At the same time, you need to know how to deal with long-term guests legally rather than taking rash actions.
Understand the Laws
Most state landlord-tenant laws dictate that those who establish residence in a place, even if they don’t own it, are still protected. However, this rule does differ when it comes to long-term guests. Long-term guests are not protected. In a court of law, the judge would determine if a person is a transient guest by how long they have lived there, if they get their mail at the property and just how much control they have over the space. If you want to get rid of a tenant’s long-term guest, you would merely follow the same actions you would for eviction.
Watch Out for the Warning Signs of a Long-Term Guest
If you are worried your tenant might have someone living in their unit for a long period of time, you can usually see the warning signs. Landlords should take notice if the long-term guest starts receiving mail on site. If the long-term guest doesn’t appear to have any other residence, they have most likely taken up residence with your tenant.
Follow the Steps Toward Eviction
If your tenant isn’t allowed to have guests beyond a week or two and you suspect they are housing a long-term guest, you can begin the eviction process. The landlord should issue a notice to quit to the tenant and their long-term guest, informing them that they need to get their guest moving or their lease will be terminated. If the notice goes without action by the tenant, you can then issue a summons and complaints. The tenant can then face court appearances where they must answer to the complaint.
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