Kicking Our Tenants When First Buying - MA

[Dan Smith]

Here's my situation:

I'm closing on a three family house in Massachusetts for December 4th.  Currently the first and third floors have tenants, the second floor is vacant.  Both current sets of tenants have lived in the building for a few years and are tenants at will.  I would like to live on the first floor (where tenants currently live).

This is my first home and it will be owner occupied, the current owner refuses to tell the tenants to leave. 

I am thinking that when I close on December 4th, I tell the current tenants on the first floor that they have a 30 day notice to vacate the unit so that I may live there.  I also, in tandem, move temporarily into the second floor unit for the month until they are gone.

My question is are there any legal ramifications that I can face for just giving them notice the day I have ownership of the property? Their current lease (signed in 2007) says that they are month to month and they need a 30 day notice to leave.  Am I missing anything?

The tenants in question are a family of 5, living in a 2 bedroom space.

I'm happy to provide any other info that I am missing...

[Matthew Paul]

Go and introduce yourself to the tenants , be nice . Tell them you will be doing some remodeling for the new tenants once you buy the place . You are changing the house to a halfway house for violent felons on parole and helping them start a new life in a new area  . You would like them to stay on as tenants to help defray some of the costs involved .  Have a buddy with you introduce him as a contractor , tell him you want to measure for bars on the windows and a 8 ft chain link fence around the yard while you are talking to the tenants .    

You wont have to evict , they will be gone before settlement .