How to Stop Eviction
Use Your Lease Records to Avoid Evictions
Signing a lease gives a tenant certain legal rights, but most tenants don’t know what these rights are. Therefore, if you have a continuing lease, but your landlord is trying to evict you, here’s how to stop evictions legally.
People living in a rental property need to pay for their living arrangements, so I’m not bagging on landlords here. But people hit by a bad economy and crumbling job market should also be given some leeway, so here’s how to get that breathing space of time to get back on your feet.
Besides, there are some landlords who want rent, but refuse to make the repairs they are obligated through the real estate records and documents to make, so I’ll give ways you can force those repairs and improvements, without being evicted.
Notice to Quit
Know what the “notice to quit” means. This does not mean you must get out on the date the notice to quit implies, though the notice states you are expected to quit living there by that date, generally between 5 days and 30 days.
Instead, a notice to quit implies that a landlord intends on pursuing an eviction notice. It’s an intermediate step a landlord must take to show the court that you have no intention to leave, and therefore must be evicted by a judge’s writ.
When you get a “notice to quit”, you’re being told that the landlord is getting his or her legal ducks in a row. Now’s the time to figure out what the problem is and take steps to avoid eviction. A notice to quit is a call to action, in other words. Read your lease agreement, pay the rent you owe and start getting your legal ducks in a row, too.
So what are your options when the process of eviction begins?
Get a New Lease
If your lease expired and you still want to go on living where you’re living, talk to your landlord about signing a new lease. If you’ve been a good tenant, but forgetful that your lease has expired, your landlord is likely to agree to this.
A lease protects both parties, so you want a lease and he/she wants a lease, too. If the two of you have had a dispute about the previous lease, but otherwise enjoyed the agreement, this is a chance to nail down who has the obligations you were butting heads about.
Forestall Eviction – Withholding Rent
Tenants can legally withhold rent to force a landlord to make improvements on a rental property, if that property is in bad condition due to negligence. Where many tenants go wrong is assuming this can be done with no paper trail.
You have to inform your landlord in writing you are withholding payment to force improvements in the property, according to his obligations in the original lease agreement. You cannot simply stop paying rent, then later tell an eviction judge that was your reasoning. In a court, everything needs legal documentation.
Furthermore, if you just received a notice to quit, now is not the time to send a notice that you’re not paying rent to force improvements. You can shift the blame, if you follow the proper steps, though.
First, you need to catch up on your rent.
Pay Your Rent – Then Force Improvements
If you get a notice to quit, pay your rent, according to court order. Once you show you’re meeting your financial obligations, then take the initiative and tell the landlord in writing that you’ll stop paying rent, in order to force him/her to make repairs to your rental property.
To make a complaint, contact your local housing authority and set down in writing your intent to stop paying rent. Ask the housing authority for further advice. Also talk to the local code enforcer about your plans. When you have made your wishes known to the housing authority, the code enforcer and the landlord, you now have the law on your side.
When you talk to these authorities, take any particular advice they give you that’s specific to your case, instead of the general advice on this blog.
Police Are Your Friends
If your landlord locks you out of your apartment or rental home without an official judicial eviction, he or she has gone beyond their legal rights. Without an eviction notice, they have no right to change the locks and lock you out.
If this happens, call the police immediately. Let them confront your landlord, instead of doing so yourself.
Tenant Extensions – Stay of Execution
Even when evicted, tenants have certain rights to stay in their rental property. For instane, if you’re being evicted for failure to pay your rent, but you post your back rent with the eviction court, you can get stay of execution on your eviction notice.
You’ll be able to stay in your home from somewhere between 5 days and 6 months, according to the judge. Judges have their own personal attitudes, so the differences can be vast. There’s no promises, though even a five day stay gives you time to make arrangements.
What this legal maneuver does is show you’ve been paying your rent in good faith for some time, but have currently met legal difficulties.
Stopping Eviction When You Have a Lease
As you see, people who sign a lease have a number of legal rights and recourses. Don’t just give up your rights, because you don’t know how to stop eviction. Your landlord knows these things, because they deal with their occasionlly, so don’t let them intimidate and trick you with scary legal notices.
In the end, your going to need to pay your way to live in this property perpetually, which is only right. But in this economy, where a lot of people are having temporary financial difficulties, learning how to stop evictions lets you keep your family rooted long enough to begin rebuilding your life on an island of stability.
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This entry was posted on Friday, March 19th, 2010 at 12:00 pm and is filed under Housing records, Real Estate Records. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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