A tenant has been evicted without a rental agreement.
A tenant without a rental agreement is called a "tenant at will." This type of tenant has few legal protections and landlords can evict them if they follow the procedures established by the state.A landlord should meet with a lawyer if he or she has legal questions.
Step 1: You need to confirm that you don't have a lease.
Don't execute a written lease, but forget about it.Tenants who have rental agreements are protected by most state laws.You should check your emails to see if you did not create a rental agreement through email.It doesn't need to be an extensive written lease to have an informal agreement.Make sure you don't make promises through email if you are worried that the tenant will object to the eviction.The tenant is still considered a "tenant at will" even if the tenant has an oral agreement.
Step 2: You should read the state law.
The steps you need to take to evict a tenant are spelled out in your state law.In Maine, a landlord must give a "notice to quit" in writing.The precise language that you must use when giving notice may be told to you by state law.If you want to evict someone in Maine because they have not paid their rent, you need to include the following language.After this notice expires, if you pay all rental arrears, all rent due as of the date of payment and any filing fees and service of process fees actually paid by the landlord before the writ of possession issues is completed, then your tenancy will be reinstated.If you don't give enough notice or include required language, a tenant can successfully dispute an eviction.
Step 3: Meet with a lawyer.
If you have legal questions about the eviction, you should talk to a lawyer.A lawyer can make sure that your notice complies with the law.He or she can file a petition for eviction for you.You should contact your state bar association to find an attorney.Private groups of attorneys called bar associations.Many of these groups run attorney referral programs and can point you to county bar associations that do the same.
Step 4: You should give enough notice.
Your state law will tell you how much time you have to give the tenant.You don't need a reason for eviction if you give a 30-day notice.You will need to state a reason if you give a 7-day notice.The eviction can't happen before the last day that rent is paid.You can't evict before the last day of March if you accept rent in March.Depending on the state, the amount of time will vary.In Texas and Massachusetts, you only need to give three days' notice if the tenant hasn't paid their rent by 14 days.
Step 5: In writing, give notice.
You should keep a copy of the notice to quit.You need to properly serve the notice.What are acceptable methods of service should be checked out by your state law.The notice to quit could become useless if you fail to serve it properly.You can personally serve notice on the tenant, leave the notice with their spouse mail it to them, have a sheriff or constable personally deliver it, or use first class mail.
Step 6: Don't remove the tenant.
Even if there is no rental agreement, you can't throw someone out of the apartment.You will need permission from the court.Prepare to file an eviction lawsuit.The tenant shouldn't be locked out.If you want to force someone out, don't change the locks or turn off utilities.If you do that, you could be fined.The date the tenant first moved in, the amount of rent, and the reason why you want to evict him or her are relevant evidence.You will need a copy of the notice to quit.
Step 7: A petition can be filed with the court.
To evict the tenant, you will need to complete a petition.You should fill out a form at the courthouse.The court clerk can give you the form.The filing fee will vary by court.Notices should be served on the tenant.You can get a summons from the clerk if you have a copy of the petition.The court clerk can give you acceptable methods of service.Someone 18 or older can make service if they are not a party to the lawsuit.You can use a private process server or the sheriff to serve notice.If you hire someone to serve notice, you will have to pay a fee.A private process server can cost up to 75 dollars.It is usually comparable to a sheriff's fee.
Step 8: Attend the hearing.
You will need to attend a hearing if the tenant wants to fight the eviction.You will go first as the landlord.Explain the reason for the eviction to the judge.Ask the judge if he or she wants to see the Notice to Quit.The tenant will leave.It is difficult for a tenant without a rental agreement to fight an eviction.The tenant could argue that you are motivated by discrimination.The tenant needs to provide evidence that you discriminated on the basis of a protected characteristic.A bald accusation is not enough.One way to defend yourself against discrimination is to point out that you allowed the tenant to rent from you in the first place.If you had a problem with his or her age, religion, race, you wouldn't have rented to them.
Step 9: The order should be taken to the sheriff.
You should take the judge's order if you win at the hearing.The sheriff will let the tenant know when law enforcement will show up to evict them.After receiving the judge's order, you can't evict the tenant yourself.You should let law enforcement handle it.
Step 10: The locks should be changed.
If the tenant had a copy of the key, you should change the locks.Wait until the tenant is evicted before changing the locks.
Step 11: Check for damage.
You can bring a suit if the tenant damaged the apartment.Take pictures of any damage to the apartment.If the tenant causes more serious damage like a hole in the wall, then you should document it.You will need to apply the tenant's security deposit to cover the damage.You can recover money that isn't covered by the security deposit.If the tenant has any money in the bank, you should consider suing.It may not be worth your time to pursue a lawsuit if you evicted a tenant because he or she couldn't pay rent.There is information on how to file a small claims case.