I've lived where I do for over a year. Recently, I let a friend move into the spare bedroom about a month ago but mainly because of his dog it is not working out and has turned into a mountain of stress for me. I am going to ask him to find another place and I'd like him to be out by the time school starts - 48 days or so. First, is that reasonable? Second, is it legal? I know NC renters law says 60 days with written notice but he never signed any lease or sublease and has no deposit. Furthermore, his dog violates my lease agreement. What are my legal obligations at this point when asking him to leave?

6/28/2011 10:56:28 AM

You can call the police and trespass his ass like any other home invader. Of course, if you do that, he will rightfully protest. The cops will be like, "Oh, so you're not on a lease? Maybe you should take this up with your property manager."

Nothing will come of that except your ass will get penalized, especially for having a goddamn dog in the apartment. It'll probably cost you money, strain your friendship, and make your living situation with any other roommates you might have even more wretched.

The best you can hope to take away from this is the hard lesson that you shouldn't let friends crash without paperwork, especially when they have dogs.

Also: http://lifehacker.com/5813681/how-to-evict-your-crappy-roommate

[Edited on June 28, 2011 at 11:03 AM. Reason : linkage]

6/28/2011 11:03:20 AM

The dog whining separation anxiety is the most annoying thing but really he's a good roomate himself but Ive lived alone almost 5 years and am not happy or comfortable sharing the space. He and his gf lived together, broke up and he wanted me to move to his place but I said we could try it here because I have a TON of stuff and he literally has clothes, a bed, tv, and music equipment. I told him it may not work because I'm too used to being on my own and didn't need the income from a roommate, just thought it would be fun.

I'm trying to figure out how to ask him to leave in a reasonable amount of time for both of us and to both protect myself legally if he loses his shit and also minimize damage to our friendship as he is one of my best friends.

I hate situations like this. Either way I'm looking at one awkward summer...

6/28/2011 11:14:47 AM

South Carolina is 30 days notice in a month to month tenancy without a lease (which is what you've created with him). Scratch that...I keep reading it like you own the house and you are his landlord.

This is kind of confusing.

Quote :

"Furthermore, his dog violates my lease agreement."

Then you should be evicted.


All kidding aside...you should just be able to ask him to leave. You are probably violating the lease agreement by having him stay there anyways (did you let the landlord know he was moving in?).

[Edited on June 28, 2011 at 11:18 AM. Reason : .]

6/28/2011 11:16:44 AM

If he is your friend he should understand. Just tell him that you thought you would help him out and see how it worked, but just that you prefer living alone and are already breaking your lease because of the dog. Just tell him you would like him to find a new place in the next month or two and maybe offer to help him move his stuff or something as a kind gesture.

6/28/2011 11:25:45 AM

The landlord knows but not about the dog, which they were specific about and I'll be evicted if they find out. Nothing at all has been signed. We had intended to but just haven't yet. It's a townhouse with a private owner that really likes me.

This is a friend though. Is 30 days fair? 45? What if he doesn't move out by that date? I haven't dealt with this shit in so long.

^^thats what I was thinking and that's really the truth. I may say August 15th and I'll give him the 2 weeks in august free so he can casually move

[Edited on June 28, 2011 at 11:39 AM. Reason : .]

6/28/2011 11:34:14 AM

JUST TALK TO HIM

6/28/2011 11:37:03 AM

this is a good example of stupid

6/28/2011 11:39:31 AM

If your roomate doesn't know who the landlord is then you can play the " someone told the landlord there was a dog here and so the landlord said it had to go" card. Basically you are throwing the blame on getting him to move out on the landlord's decision and you only have to deal with a smaller amount of guilt. God help you if he finds out the truf though

6/28/2011 12:08:31 PM

Just talk to him... I'm with others on this one. It's not a question of guilt, it's a question of reasonability and fair play. You knew about the dog, and you knew about the landlord's stance on pets and you let him take the dog in. Let him know exactly what you're worried about and then tell him you want him to move out.

They may kick and scream and yell, but you gotta tell yourself, "This is what's going to happen..."

6/28/2011 12:19:58 PM

If this is NC, its a trespass. Give'em time to move out or what not but otherwise you can kick him out. If the police say you can't, they are uneducated.

6/28/2011 4:05:03 PM

^A verbal agreement between roommates, approval from the landlord, assumed proof of residency (mail/bills/etc.)... how exactly is this trespass? He's a resident, pure and simple. Not having a lease doesn't do anything but screw the OP because his roommate now enjoys all rights of a tenant. He could always lie and say there was no such agreement but then the roommate just has to pull the landlord in to prove otherwise. Since OP broke the tenants of his lease by allowing the dog, chances are slim that the landlord is going to be on his side and want to help him. LEGALLY he has to provide 60 days notice now.


Best thing to do is just man up and tell him that you're not enjoying it. Explain that you enjoy your privacy and really miss living alone. Personally, I don't see how you can say "You need to be out in 45 days" without coming across as kind of a prick so I would expect some discomfort. If you're that good of friends, there's really no GOOD reason to say "I don't care if you haven't found something, I told you 45 days". I'd be more likely to approach it as "see if we can find you a new place in the next month or two" and "help" him search by looking at CL & stuff and sending him links. This is all based on how much you keep referring to him as a good friend. If you don't care, definitely give him the timeline.

6/28/2011 7:03:13 PM

Leave note on his door that says "PLZ 2 GTFO K THX"

6/28/2011 10:45:56 PM

Quote :

"A verbal agreement between roommates, approval from the landlord, assumed proof of residency (mail/bills/etc.)"

No it doesn't. I can have my bills sent to any address in the city or change my address without proof. A verbal agreement doesn't mean anything if there is owner/occupant lease. Your are not on the lease, you do not live there.

Where does it say his roommate has approval from the landlord?

[Edited on June 29, 2011 at 4:32 PM. Reason : ////]

6/29/2011 4:28:06 PM

Man the fuck up. It's your place, you're doing him a favor. Tell him you're not comfortable with him and his dog there, so he needs to start looking for a new place ASAP.

6/29/2011 4:35:05 PM

That's what I ended up doing. It went well but he's pretty pissed. I told him I'd give him til Aug. 15th.

here's to 50 days of awkwardness. I think if he finds a suitable situation quickly, our friendship will rebound nicely, but if not he'll probably resent me for this. I lived by myself for 5 years just to avoid this type of shit and I will NEVER have another roommate again unless I'm that broke or am married/engaged.

6/29/2011 5:04:09 PM

Quote :

"A verbal agreement doesn't mean anything if there is owner/occupant lease. Your are not on the lease, you do not live there."

Verbal agreements are just as enforceable as written agreements. And the fact that there is knowledge by the current tenant AND the landlord (the landlord knowing is the biggest part), gives his roommate a little bit of ground to stand on.

6/29/2011 5:28:10 PM

This is why would I insist on blood pacts with all my tenants. Leaves no room for misinterpretations.

6/29/2011 5:41:42 PM

Quote :

"No it doesn't. I can have my bills sent to any address in the city or change my address without proof. A verbal agreement doesn't mean anything if there is owner/occupant lease. Your are not on the lease, you do not live there. Where does it say his roommate has approval from the landlord?"

Welcome to NC where verbal contracts are legal & binding. They're pretty dumb and can be completely unenforceable but they are just as legal and binding as a written contract. Perhaps you should look that up before calling other cops uneducated.

As for the approval from the landlord, he said himself that the landlord knows about it but doesn't know about the dog.

6/29/2011 7:45:06 PM

I'm responding to the OP; here in NC if you let a friend/gf/brother/stranger move in with and they are not on a lease, they are a guest. It does not matter if they pay bills, change their DMV address, have clothes, personal accessories, or put food in the fridge. They can be trespassed on the spot by the tenant.

Now if the landlord is aware; that is a gray area. But as I'm arguing (I didn't read the part about the landlord) that is how it is in NC. I need to find the legal opinion I have on it.


This is the best I can find online; this is not my agency and from 2000
http://charmeck.org/city/charlotte/CMPD/organization/PoliceChief/PoliceAttorney/Documents/00NovPBL.pdf

[Edited on June 29, 2011 at 8:50 PM. Reason : ....]

6/29/2011 8:39:48 PM

simple way if you dont want to read through all of it and make a mistake......

look online for your state laws on this matter. a lot of times there are law firms or whatever that you can call to talk to. Simply find one that you can call that specialize in stuff like this and ask them if what you wanna do is legal and what else is ok for you to do.

6/30/2011 1:07:40 AM

^^thanks for your post.

The landlord is aware I have a friend staying here and has sent a copy of the lease to be signed. I also had a copy drafted as to the sub-lease agreement but neither/none have been signed. And as far as verbally I told him that it would be according to terms that were signed for, which hasn't happened. Even the contract I offered him said that it was a month-to-month at the discretion of the leasee (me) as to termination of the terms.

6/30/2011 2:25:38 AM

If he didn't sign the lease, he doesn't legally live there. He wants to be a shithead, kick him the fuck out.

6/30/2011 2:43:10 AM

didn't read the whole thread, sorry if this has already been resolved

arrange to have a car run into the townhouse and knock it off its foundation

then you can both move out and find new places

6/30/2011 3:50:58 AM

Quick & easy solution:

Look up the existing limitation on the contract in the clause where a guest now has become an occupant (usually something like 14 consecutive nights of sleeping there within a 45 day period or something) and use this deadline in casual conversation to politely push him to either sign or depart.

[Edited on June 30, 2011 at 10:24 PM. Reason : ]

6/30/2011 10:22:25 PM