Tenant (CA) Vacated Room w/out notice to LL before Eviction

[Tony Wang]

Hi BP,

We have a tenant that MIGHT have vacated from the room rental without completing a final inspection walk-thru that was previously agreed upon.  I have knocked on her door, though no sign of anyone inside room for about 4 days now.  We are in process of eviction.  She does have her couple items left outside her room and MIGHT be more inside the locked room, though I do not know for sure because I do not care to enter her room without advance notice to her. 

What are the CORRECT, LEGAL protocols to make at this juncture?  Do I text/call her? Do I text her to give her advance notice of my intent to enter the room?  She could have moved out, or if worse, fallen ill inside her room, and I wouldn't know.  Mean time, she is practically squatting without paying rent and we must resolve this mini crisis because we are loosing rental income for couple months now and hefty eviction/court fees as the days drag on.  Please help!  Your advise and insight are much appreciated.

AY

[Marcia Maynard]

You need to know all the landlord-tenant laws for your jurisdiction better than your tenants and about as good as your lawyer. Then be sure to do everything in a legal manner. The rental unit is in California, is that correct? In what city/county? You will need to comply with federal, state, and local laws for your jurisdiction.

Few questions/observations/comments:

• Was the tenant renting a room only or an entire place?
• Did you have a written rental agreement signed by all parties?
• Did you do an inspection of the premises prior to the tenant moving in, document your findings, and have all parties sign/date this?
• Does your jurisdiction require a final walk-through inspection with the tenant? It may be recommended, but I doubt it's required. It's not uncommon for tenants to skip a final walk-through, especially if they know they have damaged the place.
• Did you give the tenant proper legal notice to pay rent or quit? What was her response to that?
• Did you give the tenant proper legal notice to enter? Have you seen the inside of the unit lately?
• Have you attempted to contact the tenant by all means? Of course you can call her and text her.
• You can not enter the rental unit without either the tenants expressed permission to do so or having served a legal notice to enter. Why the delay of four days?
• She could have moved out. She could still be there. What do you know of the tenant's intentions?
• You could call the police to do a "welfare check" if you have good reason to believe the tenant is still in the room and incapacitated. The police will typically knock three times and then allow you to open the door with a key if there's no answer. They will go in and check if there's a person there, but not allow you to enter.
• She is not "squatting" if you entered into a rental agreement with her. She may be "unlawfully detaining" on your property if her lease has expired, hasn't been paying rent, and/or you have filed for an eviction and the judge upheld your claim.
• It's a tough situation no doubt, but not a crisis. Sounds like you have already taken legal steps necessary to evict this tenant. Consult with your attorney. No need to delay.