
Originally Posted by
Calforniahomeowner
Hello, my brother who was disabled lived in a home I own in California. There was one gentleman who we allowed to ive in the home rent free
Hello again, owner:
Good points. You may be right. But if you put him out, and he sues you for false eviction, and the court determines that he IS/WAS a tenant, you'll LOSE.
I don't think you're right however, for the following reasons: You used the term "we" above. I presumed you meant YOU and your brother. Therefore, YOU as the homeowner, along with your brother entered into a lease/rental agreement with the gentleman. And you are very much alive
Secondarily, if you didn't mean YOU, and only your brother entered into the agreement with him, I don't know that your brother had the authority to make an agreement about YOUR house. He may have, or not. I don't know what your arrangements were with your brother.
Additionally, I don't know that the rental/lease agreement DOES'T enure to your brothers estate. If it does, and I think it would, the lease IS still in effect.
Or not. I really don't know how a court would decide these matters. However, given the facts as you've outlined them, I think he's a tenant, and I think you need to evict him.
Look, he's not my buddy and I don't care about him. YOU'RE my customer. I want to protect YOU. YES, you could put him out and he may never make a peep. But, he might yell louder than hell, and could conceivably cost you a bundle.
Therefore, my advice tends to be on the conservative end. Better to be safe, than sorry. I still think you need to put him out LEGALLY. It's only going to take a month or so and it ISN'T difficult.
You can find the law at the top of the real estate page. Go to the top of THIS page and click on real estate, then look at the top of THAT page and you'll see it.
Finally, if after the above, you still want to put him out, and he calls the cops, I think THEY'LL make you let him back in. THEY don't want to be involved in YOUR false eviction suit. If they even get inkling that he's a tenant, and I'm sure he'll tell them about his arrangement, they will declare him a tenant, and tell you to handle it civilly.
excon