Can I evict tenants?

[Nick Longstreet]

Hey everyone.

I'm looking to buy a duplex in Knoxville, TN. I'm leaning toward house hacking it and would prefer to get an FHA loan for the lower up front down payment since it will be my primary residence.

Both units (3 bed 1.5 bath) are rented out for $800 in a market where rent is $1200-$1500. So I have a couple of questions:

1) Do I need to have cause for evicting the tenant out of one of the units (more than the cause that I want to live in it)?

2) With the tenants in the other unit, should I raise the rent to match market value? Or evict them as well and start new?

3) Am I even able to acquire an FHA loan if I'm unable to move in as soon as I purchase (thinking about the eviction timeline)?

Thanks!

[Michael Dumler]

@Nick Longstreet you can't just simply evict a tenant because you want to close on a property. The lease transfers with the sale of the property, therefore, the tenant is allowed to remain in the unit until their lease expires. If the tenant is month-to-month, most state laws require that the owner gives at leaset a 30-60 day notice to vacate. In your scenario, you would have to negotiate this with the seller and inlcude a stipualtion in your offer for one of the units to be delivered vacant. The same is true with your question regarding rent raises. If the tenant is on a fixed lease, then their rent cannot be raised all of a sudden. Last point, and to answer your final question, no, your lender will not issue the loan if both units are still occupied by closing. Hope this helps!