Need help evicting a tenant!!!

[Andrew Powell-Sampellegrini]

I am a prime tenant in a free market 4 bedroom apartment in NYC. My rent is $2000. I am the only one on the lease. I rent out 3 of the bedrooms to roommates. I have written agreements with them. The total monthly amount I collect from them is more than $2000. One of the roommates intercepted a rent stub and realized that i wasn't splitting the rent evenly amongst my roommates. He was unhappy and started to not pay rent. He's been living 2 months rent free now. In addition, his term expires in mid May of 2015 and has told me that he refuses to leave after his term expires. I would like to start the eviction process now. I'm aware that during the eviction process(4-6 months) he will live rent free. Questions I have: What are my chances of successfully evicting him? Can I take him to small claims court for back rent and/or for the rent that would be owed during the eviction process? What kind of problems can he cause for me if any? Any comments would be much appreciated.

[Account Closed]

What if you tell him you will simply report the rent he owes you to a collection agency, which will show up on his credit report?  And every month he stays and owes you rent, you create a new collection account for the new amount owed?

From what I understand, you can report a debt even if you don't have a judgment from court.  

If you use a landlord collection agency to collect the debt, the collection on his credit report will show that the debt is to a landlord.  This will affect his ability to rent from someone else.  

For instance:

http://www.rentrecoveryservice.com/

You can choose a flat fee service of only $16.95 where they send one collection letter to him, and report it to all three credit bureaus.

So, ask him how much his credit report matters to him?  I'd tell him no deal.  Move now or get evicted and get your credit ruined and an eviction on your record - both of which will pretty much ruin his ability to find a decent rental in the future.

And print out this article to hand to him, too:

http://homeguides.sfgate.com/apartment-eviction-me...

I'd tell him he needs to be out by a certain date (maybe a week?) or you start the eviction and report the debt to collection agencies now, and again every month he stays.

You have every right to charge whatever you want.  He was willing to pay what you contracted for, when he moved in, and that's what he owes you.  

What a hassle.  Good luck.