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Mattg12
Apr 3, 2013, 07:53 PM
Some basic information to start.

This is involving an associate of mine.
In the state of Michigan
-Oral lease in which she has been a -tenant for 7 years (I know oral lease agreements are under 12 months but being a long time not sure if it can be considered anything)
-lessor lives in California
-the lessee pays for all of the houses bills to maintain as the owner lives in California house is paid for so there is no monthly rent payment.

Suddenly the lessor decided he wanted the lessee to vacat immediately for no reason. All the bills are being paid. The property is being well maintained and there was no issues between the two parties. Does the lessor have to give her any notice since this is an oral agreement past a year? Is there anyway she can stay a tenant until she finds another place to live? Any help is appreciated. I am familiar with law terms so any statues or terms used I can translate.

Thank you,
Matt

LisaB4657
Apr 3, 2013, 08:06 PM
Since there is no written lease this is considered a month-to-month tenancy. Either the landlord or the tenant can terminate the tenancy for any reason with 30 days written notice. If the landlord gives the tenant a written notice that the tenancy is terminated and the tenant must move out within 30 days, and if the tenant fails to move out within that time, then the landlord can file a lawsuit to evict the tenant.

Your associate can try speaking with the landlord to see if they can work something out to continue the tenancy. If they can't work something out then your associate should have approximately 5 to 6 weeks to find a new place to live from the time they receive the written notice from the landlord.

ScottGem
Apr 4, 2013, 03:17 AM
the lessee pays for all of the houses bills to maintain as the owner lives in California house is paid for so there is no monthly rent payment.

I'm curious about the above statement. So the lessee is living rent free but pays all utilities and taxes as well as maintenance and repair costs? That's a curious arrangement. I wonder how it came to be.

But I doubt if it would matter. As Lisa said, this appears to be a periodic tenancy and can be terminated by either party with 30 days written notice. So no, the tenant can't be required to vacate "immediately", but as long as the landlord follows the rules for terminating a periodic tenancy, the tenant can be required to vacate.

Fr_Chuck
Apr 4, 2013, 03:39 AM
And of course if there is no "issue" between parties, why are they wanting them out, and out right NOW. Seems there has to be more to this story