California Landlord And Tenant Legal Questions

I am not sure about the law, but if you are going to install a lock, even though you think the sheriff will come in a few days [check to made sure when they actually will come], since your tenant obviously is a big problem and will use anything she can against you [which is why you have to get the sheriff to evict her], do not tell her that you are getting a lock because you think she is stealing your mail, tell her someone is so to protect your mail you are getting a lock but you will check the box every day and immediately put her mail where she can get it.... Read Answer

Notice is not required to terminate a tenancy after the lease term ends. You can start an unlawful detainer action.  An unlawful detainer should take 4 to 8 weeks.  However, you will quickly get in over your head if you try to do this yourself.  Contact an attorney to do this for you.... Read Answer

If the tenant did not take possession of the premises (took the keys to the premises), then you are not entitled to any rent under the rental agreement.  You may charge an application fee or credit check fee, but that's about $35.  You may be able to sue for consequential damages for your breach of contract, because you held the premises available for the prospective tenant.  However, you can only charge until you rent out the premises, or should have rented out the premises.  You can sue in small claims court in the county where the premises are located.  Here is a link that may help you:  http://www.courts.ca.gov/selfhelp-smallclaims.htm  ... Read Answer

Unfortunately, the mere fact that you have lived in the same apartment building for 9 years is not what?s important. The real issue is whether you have a lease or a month to month agreement. If you have a lease, then you are responsible for the rent to the end of the lease term. If you can?t pay your rent, the landlord may evict you and seek a judgment for all of the rent that you would owe to the end of the term. This amount might be less if the landlord finds another tenant to replace you and he/she does have an obligation to try to get a replacement tenant. If you are on a month to month rental agreement, then if you fail to pay the rent when due, then the landlord can start eviction proceedings against you. You would still be responsible for all the rent due while you occupy the premises. If you choose to move out, and you are on a month to month agreement, then you must give at least 30 days notice to the landlord and you will be responsible for the rent through the end of the notice period (or until you move out, whichever is later). You really should make every effort to pay your rent, even ahead of other bills, because if you are evicted, you will have trouble renting another place, since an eviction is a public record that is easily checked by a new prospective landlord. I strongly advise that you meet with an experience attorney for a more detailed discussion. You can also find detailed information about the eviction process at http://www.courts.ca.gov/27798.htm.... Read Answer

The procedure of what to do with the tenant's belongings is under Civil Code sections 1980 - 1991. First, take an inventory of the tenant's belongings.  Take pictures and/or video.  Throw away any trash. Then, determine the value of the belongings as if you were to buy them at a garage sale.  Box up the tenant's belongings and put them in storage.  Then, serve notice to the tenant called "Notice of Right to Reclaim Abandoned Property."  You must describe the tenant's property.  Mail it to the address of the rental unit, if you do not have a forwarding address for the former tenant.  You can charge the tenant for the reasonable costs to box up and store the belongings. If the tenant does not request to come get their belongings within 18 days of mailing notice, if the property is worth less than $700, you can sell it, keep it, donate it, burn it, or do whatever you want with it.  If it is worth more than $700, then you must have a licensed and bonded public auctioneer auction off the belongings.  The proceeds are used to pay the auction costs and the rest goes to the county.  If you have a money judgment against the tenant, then you can obtain a writ of execution for the Sheriff to seize the funds from the auction.... Read Answer

First contact the insurance adjuster and tell them they have had more than enough time to get a "coverage report" and if she can not make a decision immediately, you want to talk to the head of the claims department. If it is a personal injury claim [some accident caused the injuries], the attorney will have put in an allegation for negligence so your insurance should have coverage. if needed, call several local disability rights groups to see if they know anything about this attorney. If you personally did nothing to cause the discrimination, mail a letter to the attorney and tell him your are neither the owner nor one who did anything illegal and you what little money you have is protected under the law as to garnishment [taking a part of your paycheck; also, your father can figure out how to pay you not in cash-pay your rent, buy your food, etc]. State that as a point of principle you will fight the case. Assuming he had you properly served with the summons and complaint, if he has no case against you, tell him you will complain to the California Bar Association and if he goes forward after you, ?you will demurrer [legalese for object] and file a motion under Calif. Code of Civil of procedure section 128.7 for sanctions against him personally for filing a frivolous suit, both in fact and legal and with an evil intent to harass you.sue him personally under CCP. If that does not work, or your father gets sued, post again with the detail of his claim and status of the case.... Read Answer

I assume this occurred in California, so the Ellis Act would apply. I also do not know whether this is a single family house and whether your family was going to pay any kind of rent. But you do not state which city and each one can have different laws as to must proceed. Violation of any one of the numerous provision can result in your not being able to get out of the rental business and hefty fines. You need to speak to a local attorney who handles such matters on the landlord side; normally an initial interview is free so that the attorney can tell you if they can help [find out exactly what they are going to do, how long it will take to do those acts, and the expected cost to you]. First of all, you should have tried to re-rent once the tenant left and your family decided not to move in. Your ability to claim loss of rent damages from the prior tenant would end after a "reasonable" period of time to try to re-rent the property. Secondly, I have not read any cases on the Ellis Act but I assume a good faith effort to move your family in [supported by a good reason why they did not as otherwise a judge will assume they never did I do not understand what they had to worry about the prior tenant so that they did not move in, unless it was that they did not know how long it would take to evict and they could not wait the unknown period of time] and not the actual moving in is sufficient. Thirdly, we need a lot more information to determine if the tenant has what appears might be a valid claim against you. If you followed all the local and State provisions and notice provisions, the tenant would have no right to stop paying rent and could be evicted with the giving of a three day notice and a successful unlawful detainer suit [if you did not do that correctly, you might have to start it all over again or have no right to evict]. Did you already go to court, does the tenant have a good job or money to pay a judgment against them, are your parents willing to testify, is the former tenant represented by an attorney [some tenant attorneys are almost impossible to deal with as they view all landlords as the spawn of the Devil], etc. Good luck.... Read Answer

At that early in the morning, you do have to be considerate of your neighbors. Perhaps when you have not used the bike for a few days, go and ask the complaining neighbor if you have bothered him and if he says yes as to the period you did not use the bike, gently point that out to him. Would something like a white noise machine help? It is more of a question of being considerate than of what the law might require.... Read Answer

What were the false allegations? Was there a written rent agreement? Since we do not have all the facts, it is impossible to give a completely accurate answers. I strongly suggest that you contact an experienced Landlord/Tenant attorney for a face-to-face consultation and give him/her all of the facts surrounding your situation. (S)he would then be in a better position to analyze your case and advise you of your options.... Read Answer

In the City of Los Angeles, you can only be terminated for good cause. The notice has to be in a proper form, and these cases are the most subject to challenge. Are you in L.A. City or another rent controlled area? Did the notice list specific witnesses, times and circumstances?       Gary Starre  1818 501 7827... Read Answer

You need to give us more details. Are you still living there and they are now saying you have to take over the maintenance or did you leave the premises and they are trying to bill you against the security deposit. Assuming the former, what you have to pay is governed by your lease. Normally, the landlord has to take care of repairs and can not charge the tenant for matters of normal wear and tear, such as replacing light bulbs that just burn out from normal usage or appliances that just have worn out. If the owner wants you to pay for those items, it is something that has to be agreed to when the new lease needs to be signed, but it is doubtful a landlord would insist on your paying for such minor things since the cost of finding a new tenant is relatively high [the unit would probably sit empty for a month before someone new moved in at possibly the same rent].... Read Answer

You are a sub-tenant of the family that is renting the premises and they must follow the local law as to evictions for unlawful detainer. If you are fulfilling the three requirements you list, in California they would have to give you a 60 day written notice that your month to month tenancy is not going to be renewed before they could begin an unlawful detainer action which might take 3-6 weeks in which to get a judgment against you. If there is a local rent control law you might have even more time. If you were not following the three requirements, then they could give you a written three day notice served on you and then file suit.... Read Answer