No lease evictions? Notice to quit?

[Account Closed]

Hello BP!!!

Im currently facing an issue,

I have a tenant i want to evict in my multi-family property, i live upstairs, she lives downstairs.

She is is currently 3 days late on payments and is a no lease tenancy.

I live in Massachusetts, my question is how do i go about it?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

[Thomas S.]

Step one is to get a copy of your state landlord tenant regulations. You need to learn the codes and will find most answers. You should be able to find the regulations on line. After you read through them come back for clarification if needed.

[Dennis M.]

@Gabriel Feliciano

First mistake -investing in mass.

Second mistake -no lease agreement

[Andrew B.]

There is no such thing as a no lease tenancy. Acceptance of rent constitutes a legally binding, month to month ORAL lease. Under an oral lease, everything defaults to state law. You must deal with this tenant the same exact way you would if you had a written, month to month lease.

[Douglas Snook]

@Andrew B. is correct, the law will set the terms if nothing is written.  Why does she not have a written lease???

This is a straight forward non-payment issue. Written lease or not she gets a 14 day Notice to Quit for Non-Payment. Check with your local Housing Court, they may have a prepared form for you to use. If she does not pay at the end of the 14 days you move on to the next step and have her served with a Summons (that you can get from the court and they will help you fill in the dates) and then you file it with the court. If she pays anytime up to the court date then that ends the eviction.

[Ann Bellamy]

You can check landlord tenant law in MA here:  

https://www.mass.gov/guides/the-attorney-generals-...

Pay particular attention to the fact that you also owner-occupy the building, that makes a difference.  Don't try to self-help the eviction, in MA you need an attorney to save you from yourself.  Laws and courts are very tenant friendly.  The courts love to hand out triple damages to uninformed landlords.  

[Nathan Gesner]

You don't know the law so I highly recommend you hire an attorney. Doing this the wrong way can cause you a lot of pain and cost you much more than an eviction specialist would charge.

[Colleen F.]

Also don't just use a lawyer use someone experienced in Massachusetts evictions.   It will make things quicker and easier. The first step is a pay or quit notice. If they pay  and you still want them to leave you can ask the  lawyer how to notice them. 

[Anne Smith]

I hope this isnt your tenant....

http://www.city-data.com/forum/renting/2231384-fussy-anxious-tenant.html