Several months ago a friend of mine and her 3 children had been evicted from their rental home. I told my friend to store her belongings in a storage facility and come stay awhile with me. Nine months later she is still here. Afew days ago we argued over her treatment of her kids since meeeting her new boyfriend of 4 weeks. I told her to leave my house. the police were called and the officer adviced my friend to just get here things and leave including her child. the next day she brought her child back and the child (13) told me that her mom said she could live with me. a week later my friend returns with the police to pick up more of her things. sher did not take her child with her but insulted me cursed at me and said she will be back tomorrow with family and children services. to top it all off this Police officer told me that she (the friend" could enter the house at anytime by any means including force and that she (friend) had rights to everything in the house because it was "commmunity property". what is that all about? I told the officer how this all came to be and I was told that "it's the law" and that I could take her (friend) to court to battle over my property? am I hearing this right? someone please show me my rights here? The lease is in my name only no agreeement between me and the friend was ever signed.

Once you let someone stay for 9 months, it may have been implied that she was a co-tenant. Most states allow purely verbal (non-written) lease agreements. I know this isn't fair, in your case. Good luck

Hello,

In Washington it is six weeks for an individual to go beyond guest, to resident status. It is the absence of a written agreement, or lease, that causes this. At the point of conflict, one must demand in writing, a given amount of rent per month, and go through eviction process as though there was an agreement, based on that written demand, and the date of its issuance. It does sound as though there are differences in your state, however, but I think the same general thinking applies. That is why the daughter is allowed to stay, and the former roommate allowed to come and go; they are essentially residents, subject to the same rights as the chief tenant.

Lawford

Dear Lawford:

I live in Washington State and have a no-longer-welcome houseguest that's been here two weeks with no rental agreement (written or oral), no housekey, no mail here. Benjamin Franklin once said, "both fish and visitors begin to smell after three days." So what your "houseguest/roommate" post says is it's six weeks in Washington State. So I can kick her out with NO ADVANCE NOTICE, then? Can you cite the Washington State Law that differentiates a houseguest from a legal tenant?

It sounds like your 'friend' took advantage if your kindness. If you check her past I feel you will find many evictions. As a landlord myself I learned my home state laws of Florida the hard way. Here they only have to stay 2 days and nights. Then if they have property in the house they are considered residents and if they know the law you will have to go through a 2 to three month process with the courts to evict them while they remain rent free in/on your property.
I had a friend in Hudson Florida who rented a room to a character and when it went bad he casually threatend to 'kick his ass' if he didn't leave. Well, the character knowing the law went down to the courthouse and got a restraining order against my friend and two days later the police came and threw my friend out of his own house for the duration of the eviction period.
I tell you of this because in your case your 'friend' is a female with kids, and that fact alone will make it much easier for her to do the same to you so be careful what you say to her especially in front of others. Meanwhile, the web is your best friend. So run a search for "landlord tennant rights" in your state. This will give you a thorough description of the landlord tennant laws in your state and then you'll know what your up against and your best and cheapest options. Also if you know the last landlord whom evicted your 'friend' I recommend you contact him/her for advice on removing your now unwanted guests.

Good luck as I know this can be frustrating especially your first time going through it.

AAAAAAAAAw! this friend of yours must be crazy!
Its so bad that you helped her but now its you who is asking for others help against her. Shame on these kind people. Maybe this is the reason why she was kicked out from her previous place.

You will have to go through the formal process of eviction with your friend and her daughter's. The biggest challenge you are going to face if she does indeed give you any grief about it is that she was not paying rent. When someone begins paying rent, you have 'proof' that they were living with you in court. And for how long.

Without this, you will have a tough time in court.

You might want to consult with your local HUD office after checking this website for more info: http://www.hud.gov/local/wa/renting/tenantrights.cfm

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Have you browsed through the information in LawInfo's Free Legal Resource Center to learn more about your issue yet? See: http://www.lawinfo.com/consumer.html. You can certainly try to speak to a lawyer to determine what legal options may be available. In the meantime, you may be able to learn more on your own. Search the "Free Legal Resources" tab, or browse the Consumer Resources. Good luck.

I know this goes outside the spirit of the holidays, but as someone with a lot of experience with and exposure to situations like this, the reality is that when you have friends or casual acquaintenances who are needing a place to stay, putting them up in your own residence really is NOT usually the best option. You have to keep in mind that there are REASONS why they are being kicked out, and even more reasons why they don't have ties with parents, siblings, other family members to turn to - and often its because those bridges have already been burned. If they are turning to friends to take them in, particularly in open-ended situations (ie don't already have something lined up), it really needs to be a BIG red flag and if you wish to assist, you need to do so ONLY after getting some very fundamental things (like a lease agreement) IN WRITING. Allowing others to live under your roof often comes with the consequence of providing those others with unintended rights, and resulting legal nightmares should you want them out before they are ready to leave. Your BETTER option is to get them to a program in the area who can assist them, or give them enough cash for a few nights at a motel until they can get in contact with programs/agencies. Those programs have MUCH more in the way of legal protections (they can toss people out, without eviction) and are MUCH more versed in providing aid (and motivation) to make positive change than most individuals. It's really a shame that trying to help others so often results in the helper being taken advantage of - but those with the biggest hearts sometimes get the biggest heart ACHES.

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While pointers can be helpful, ultimately the number one lesson in any legal action is: don't take legal advice from books, family, friends, co-workers, police officers, grocery clerks, web sites, or people on legal message boards. The only person who can give YOU legal advice is YOUR attorney.

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