[monaco]

I am a landlord in Texas I got a phone call from my tenants brother who called to ask me to let him in to my rental property becase his sister my renter had move out because she couldn't pay the electricity and it was cut off I had been trying to contact her because she was not playing the rent so I took her bother to my property and disscovered when I went in to the house that the refrigerator was left open with food in it and bags of trash were left in the wash room not to mention around 20 bags left by the back door and put under the house I hauled off the trash and cleaned the house and changed the locks its been over a month and I did try to contacked her without any luck an than yesterday I got a phone call from the cops saying that it was still her house since I didn't evict her and that she need to get back in the house to get her furniture I told them she abandon the house and they told me she could do whatever she wanted and if I interfeared the would arest me I need Advice?

[monaco]

My ex-tenant was at my rental property prying open the door with a crowbar on 7-26-11
The cops called me out to the property the deputy said she was still my tenant until I evict her and that she need to have her furniture moved So the deputy set up a day and time with me so I could move her stuff for her I showed up she didn't, when she finely return my call I had been out at the rental house for 2 hours I got off work ealy to meet her and she tells me she couldn't make it out she was busy and that she was planing on moving back in .Her water was cut off around 6-20-11 I started cleaning the rental house on 6-27-11 her rent was up 6-10-11 and I changed the locks a couple of days ago I don't know what to do except take her to court. So if anyone has any advice? Thanks

[ScottGem]

Yes, before you become a landlord, learn the rules about tenant rights and landlord responsibilities.

You will be lucky if she doesn't sue the pants off you for an illegal eviction. Did you turn off the water or was the account in her name and was it shut for non-payment? You are lucky the deputy didn't require that you give her a copy of the key.

Your ONLY recourse to remove a tenant is through legal action. Did the tenant give any indication that she abandoned the premises? Did you give her any notices to pay or vacate?

I would strongly advise that you hire an attorney to help you deal with this properly. Changing the locks constitutes an illegal eviction in most areas (ANY question on law needs to include your general locale as laws vary by area.). Turning off utilities is also grounds for an illegal eviction suit. But if you try to correct those items now by letting her back in, you may give her ideas that she has a case against you. That's why I suggest an attorney.

If you had asked us on 6/15 what to do, we could have advised you and you could have done it without an attorney. But now you have put yourself at risk for a lawsuit and you need an attorney's help.

[ScottGem]

Ok, I just found the first post you made on this subject which contains more info and merged them. Please don't start new threads on the same issue. Use the Answer options at the bottom of the page to add to your thread.

Did you take pictures of the mess that was left? Do you have any proof of the attempts you made to contact her? Do you have proof that the utilities were cut off BY the UTILITIES for non payment? These can help you prove abandonment.

So what you do now is send her a notice giving her 3 business days to pay what she owes or vacate. Send it to the last known address (which may be the address of your property) certified, return receipt requested. If she doesn't respond then on the 4th day you go to your local housing court and apply for an eviction order.

In the meantime get letters from the utilities that service was shut for non-payment.

The housing court will order an hearing. You go to the hearing with the utility letters, any photographic proof of the condition of the house etc. The judge should issue an eviction order. You then send her notice and tell her to give you a firm time to come pick up her things. Otherwise, you will have a sheriff come and pout her things out on the street. The dates you can do this will be listed on the eviction order granted by the court.

If you had sent this notice on 6/11 when the rent was late, you would have had it completed by now.

[AK lawyer]

...
You will be lucky if she doesn't sue the pants off you for an illegal eviction. ...

I wouldn't hold my breath.

Your defense to such a suit would be, of course, that she appeared to have abandoned the premises. If the tenant had in fact abandoned you would have been perfectly justified in changing the locks. The problem is that the law doesn't give many hard and fast rules on what constitutes abandonment.

The police, it appears to me, were believing her side of the story instead of yours, for some reason. The problem is that, should she sue, the judge might believe her side as well. That is why many experts, such as ScottGemm I believe, recommend getting an eviction order in all cases before taking possession of your rental premises, even where an abandonment is suspected.

Another reason the police took the position they did, I'm guessing, is that they were attempting to resolve the matter with a minimum of delay and expense. Under the circumstances she probably had a right to recover her possessions, and they were trying to get this done the easiest way.

[Fr_Chuck]

How many things can one landlord do wrong,

First of course the cops can't summons you out to your property,

But she has a right to her belongings and as long as her belongings are in there, you have to evict.

Normally it works the other way, they take everything, including copper pipe, air units, any appliances and more.

[monaco]

Yes I took pictures her brother even helped get the food out of the refrigerator when I took him to get his belongings.I am getting the letters from the utilities saying they were cut off for non payment but the deputy told me yesterday that people live with there electricity being cut off all the time that doen't prove abandoment and my tenant told them she's only been gone 2 weeks but I have tenants next door who know she's been gone over a month. I also did put a notice to pay or vacate on her front door back on 6-11-11 when she told me she didn't have all the rent money and she wasn't sure when or if she'd have it.I can also print my phone bill it shows how many times I call her or she called me, the dates ,times, how long the calls lasted and since she never picked up or returned my call that should help right?

[ScottGem]

...
You will be lucky if she doesn't sue the pants off you for an illegal eviction. ...

I wouldn't hold my breath.

I will point out that comment was made after seeing the OP's second post which was posted as a new thread. So I did not have the additional info that was in the first post. Having merged the two a fuller picture emerges. And I think the OP has a good chance of proving abandonment (especially with the utility shutoffs).

But I still maintain the OP should have issued a 3 day pay or quit on 6/11 and would have probably avoided much of this.

[AK lawyer]

... I also did put a notice to pay or vacate on her front door back on 6-11-11 when she told me she didn't have all the rent money and she wasn't sure when or if she'd have it. ...

If you want to make the case that you gave her proper notice to quit, I don't think you did.

"Sec. 24.005. NOTICE TO VACATE PRIOR TO FILING EVICTION SUIT.
...
(f) The notice to vacate shall be given in person or by mail at the premises in question. Notice in person may be by personal delivery to the tenant or any person residing at the premises who is 16 years of age or older or personal delivery to the premises and affixing the notice to the inside of the main entry door. Notice by mail may be by regular mail, by registered mail, or by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the premises in question. If the dwelling has no mailbox and has a keyless bolting device, alarm system, or dangerous animal that prevents the landlord from entering the premises to leave the notice to vacate on the inside of the main entry door, the landlord may securely affix the notice on the outside of the main entry door." PROPERTY CODE  CHAPTER 24. FORCIBLE ENTRY AND DETAINER

You should have given the notice to her and posted it.

I assume you afixed it to the outside, but that the exceptions, set out in the statute quoted, allowing affixing to the outside of the door don't apply.

[ScottGem]

Yes I took pictures her brother even helped get the food out of the refrigerator when i took him to get his belongings.I am getting the letters from the utilities saying they were cut off for non payment but the deputy told me yesterday that people live with there electricity being cut off all the time that doen't prove abandoment and my tenant told them shes only been gone 2 weeks but I have tenants next door who know shes been gone over a month. I also did put a notice to pay or vacate on her front door back on 6-11-11 when she told me she didn't have all the rent money and she wasn't sure when or if she'd have it.I can also print my phone bill it shows how many times I call her or she called me, the dates ,times, how long the calls lasted and since she never picked up or returned my call that should help right?

Yes all that will help. But why didn't you follow up on the pay or quit? Why didn't you file for an eviction notice on 6/15?

[monaco]

Thank you for the advice I appreciate it and sorry about how I posted it,it was my first post and I didn't quite know how to do it.The thing is I am only 20 years old my brother owns the rental property I've been trying to manage things for him while he's out of the country most of his tenants have been his tenants for years now,he only has 3 rental houses so I haven't been in a position like this I assumed since she took all of her belongings except for the furniture and the fact she hasn't returned my calls are tried contacted me in any way for over a month I wouldn't need to evict her because she abangond the property but now that I know I won't be getting into a predicament like this again.