Hi, my question is my father in law gave my husband this house to live in, in lake wales Fl. 3 yrs ago with out a written lease and now he just served us with a 3 day eviction notice not signed by the court what are we suppose to do I can't find anything on this please help!

Hello CN:

With nothing written, you are a month to month tenant subject to your states landlord tenant laws. I don't know why he's evicting you, but he certainly can bring you to court to tell a judge about it.

excon

So ignore the notice till he takes you to court. He is required to give you a notice prior to taking you to court.

But what are you suppose to do ? Either correct the situation, normally 3 day notice is for non payment of rent due or illegal activiy on property. 30 day notice for other issues is normal. But if you just ignore the notice, he will have to take you to court.

But what you are suppose to do/ if he gives you a notice you are suppose to move.

You cannot be evicted without a court order.

Make an appointment right away with an attorney who specializes in landlord & tenant law in your area and find out what your rights are, and what options are available to you.

Yes, you can be evicted without a court order. If there is no written lease, he can evict you. You are on a month to month rental agreement. If rent has not been paid on time he does have the right to evict you. A notice to quit is a document that he should have had served on you and your husband, he can get this document himself and deliver it to you. If this is for non payment of rent, you have 3-5 days minimum to leave, which you are supposed to leave. If you don't leave, he can go to the courthouse and get a unlawful detainer which comes right after the notice of quit. If there were a lease there would be more options.

Yes, you can be evicted without a court order.

No, you cannot be evicted without a court order. Not sure where you live, but the original asker stated that she lives in FL, which is in the USA. In the USA, the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution prohibits the deprivation of liberty or property without due process of law.

Due process, as it applies to Polk County, FL landlord/tenant matters is explained in a very basic fashion here:

Landlord/Tenant Rights & Responsibilities (http://www.polksheriff.org/detention/landlordtenant_rights.html)

But the original asker should still bring her paperwork to an attorney and get a consultation and not rely on the internet for legal advice.


If there is no written lease, he can evict you.

Lack of a written lease does NOT mean that they do not have a valid tenancy. I see landlords every single day who are amazed to find out that lack of a lease benefits the tenant, not the landlord.


You are on a month to month rental agreement.

Was this written in some sort of special ink that only you can see? I ask because the words that are visible on my screen say that her father-in-law gave the house to her husband to live in. I also don't see any mention of rent.


A notice to quit is a document that he should have had served on you and your husband, he can get this document himself and deliver it to you.

And you used your crystal ball and your admission to the Florida Bar to... determine that the Notice was statutorily proper in form, content and service?? And that it was even applicable to her unique situation of being given a house to live in??


If this is for non payment of rent, you have 3-5 days minimum to leave, which you are supposed to leave.

Uh... in the USA, landlord/tenant law differs from state to state and even from county to county, but the remedy for non-payment is to pay the rent, not just pack up and leave.


If you don't leave, he can go to the courthouse and get a unlawful detainer which comes right after the notice of quit.

Good Grief. That is wrong in so many ways, I simply don't know where to begin.


If there were a lease there would be more options.

Really? So... let's say someone doesn't pay their rent and they have a lease. What additional "options" would there be?

but the original asker should still bring her paperwork to an attorney and get a consultation and not rely on the internet for legal advice. Was this written in some sort of special ink that only you can see? I ask because the words that are visible on my screen say that her father-in-law gave the house to her husband to live in. I also don't see any mention of rent. Hello Sharon:

We welcome new experts here.

Couple of things you might be interested in. The first is that LisaB IS a real estate attorney (in New Jersey) We have others here too. Next is that we have copies of ALL the states landlord tenant laws right here on this forum at the top on a sticky note. We're an ALL encompassing website, so you don't need to send them anywhere else for advice.

The next would be your recent assessment. Sometimes we have to interpret what our guests are saying. Clearly, this guy wasn't "given" the house. His stay there is based upon some criteria and that is what makes him, from a legal perspective, a tenant. Without a lease, he's a month to month tenant.

The last is that even though neither I, nor ScottGem, the other major contributor here, are attorney's, in my opinion, our advice here is as good as you'll get from most law firms, and better than most.

Of course, I would say that, wouldn't I?

excon

[QUOTE=SharonfromHoboken]No, you cannot be evicted without a court order. Not sure where you live, but the original asker stated that she lives in FL, which is in the USA. In the USA, the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution prohibits the deprivation of liberty or property without due process of law.

Due process, as it applies to Polk County, FL landlord/tenant matters is explained in a very basic fashion here:

I am just stating from my own personal experience. If there is no lease, and someone that is not living in the home has the title , meaning they own the property. They can more or less do what they want. True, it may not seem fair, but that's what happens when there is nothing is written. I advise that anyone who is put in that situation to have something in writing. Relative or not.


Landlord/Tenant Rights & Responsibilities (http://www.polksheriff.org/detention/landlordtenant_rights.html)

But the original asker should still bring her paperwork to an attorney and get a consultation and not rely on the internet for legal advice.



Lack of a written lease does NOT mean that they do not have a valid tenancy. I see landlords every single day who are amazed to find out that lack of a lease benefits the tenant, not the landlord.


Lack of written lease does not mean that they do not have a valid tenancy, I never said that it did. I only stated the avenues the owner of the property would go through to put them out.