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Updated over 2 years ago on . Most recent reply

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51
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Paul Kubin
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Fort Smith, AR
48
Votes |
51
Posts

What if tenant prevents access to property?

Paul Kubin
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Fort Smith, AR
Posted

Short version of the story:  

-My mom has dementia, is out of money, and has been moved to an independent facility.  The house is owned outright, but she is otherwise broke.  We are loaning her estate 5K/mo to pay for her stay a the facility.

-We served my deadbeat sister who has mooched off mom for years, rent-free, with eviction papers.  Except for the deadbeat sister, the house is empty. No furniture, utensils, food, carpet, etc.  Utilities are on, but otherwise, it's a bare house. 

-We notified the deadbeat sister, in writing as required, (72 and) 24 hours in advance that the carpet installers were coming today.

-When the installers arrived (they had the door code), she fled to her bedroom and screamed at them until they left (without carpeting any of the house).

Is this grounds to terminate her tenancy immediately?  It's going to cost us a minimum of $500 more to have the installers come back another day.  I'd make her pay for it, but she has no money.

What else can we do?

***Before you criticize me/us for evicting my sister, it's not something my other sisters and I ever wanted.  We gave her plenty over a year of warning about the situation, and have tried to work with her, but she will not communicate with us in any way.  We offered cash for keys, which she didn't respond to.  At this rate, we'll be selling the house in winter, and that's gonna hurt my mom's finances huge.

Any community thoughts / advice would be greatly appreciated.  

  • Paul Kubin
  • Most Popular Reply

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    Nathan Gesner
    • Real Estate Broker
    • Cody, WY
    41,075
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    Nathan Gesner
    • Real Estate Broker
    • Cody, WY
    ModeratorReplied
    Quote from @Paul Kubin:

    You can't trespass her. You have to go through a formal eviction. 

    I recommend you hire an attorney with experience. Once they start serving her with notice of termination, there's a very good chance she'll realize it's a lost cause and move out. If not, just go through the process of eviction and get her out. It may cost a little and take a little time, but you'll be happy you hired a professional and did it right the first time.


    • Nathan Gesner
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