Unauthorized Occupants

by **eddis** » Sun May 11, 2014 4:42 am

On my lease I have specifically stated that any person who is on the property for three consecutive nights is an unauthorized occupant.My tenant decided to move in her boyfriend whose name is not on the lease.I consider him an unauthorized occupant.Can I evict the named tenants for not following the guidelines that I have on the lease?I have asked her by phone to remove him and the police also came and removed him.
But he returns every night.I really don't want an eviction, I want that any unauthorized tenant(s) to move out and stay out.
I don't think I have too many choices, though.In the past this didn't bother until it started becoming an issue where I had to be involved.
It became a safety issue for me, the tenants and the property.So I don't allow anyone to stay there unless they are named on the lease. I am very strict on this rule.
But I don't know how a judge would rule on it.Any suggestions?

by **Fulumirani** » Sun May 11, 2014 5:37 pm

The problems do not arise because a person lives there i.e. the stolen cars, drugs etc....The problem is the crime that a tenant or guest perps. It would far better to evict a person who themselves or guests commit a crime.
I know it is hard to be able to prove that the drugs in the backyard belonged to a specific person but you know who it was just by knowing who has been hanging out and how they dress and act. I have had the same problem at times and found a very helpful "Addendum" that is a crime and drug free housing addendum. Here is the link to the lawfirm that has this addendum. You have to get a login name and password to download it but it is free and well worth it. In general it states any crime, suspected crime, on or off the property, by a tenant or a guest who is staying there etc....is grounds for termiation of lease. Give it a glance; this might be a better alternative than to ban guests all together. http://www.htspc.com/documents/LeaseLook under addendums then "Crime and Drug free Housing addendum"

by **Adhamhnan** » Mon May 12, 2014 1:16 pm

"... yes the police did escort him off the property."Simply because you asked them to or ...? Interesting police you have there (they should not have done so).If someone is engaging in unlawful activities, damaging or destructive behavior and involving your property in the endeavor, obviously you have rights to put an end to it.
I think you'll be on the losing end in eviction action.
Hard to say whether a court would deem your rules-regs "reasonable" or that the violations/effect of having broken them is "substantial".
At a bare minimum, I trust you have evidence of written warning notice to cure to the tenant.Again, you should consult with a local real estate attorney if you don't have time to devote to researching rights-obligations under Jersey law.

by **Caimheul** » Mon May 12, 2014 10:12 pm

"On my lease I have specifically stated that any person who is on the property for three consecutive nights is an unauthorized occupant."On its face, I should think this is an unenforceable position."My tenant decided to move in her boyfriend whose name is not on the lease."Question is what the legal occupancy limit is on a place that size."Can I evict the named tenants for not following the guidelines that I have on the lease?"Probably not."I have asked her by phone to remove him and the police also came and removed him."You don't elaborate, but I gather that you had nothing to do with the police removing him? (I'd be mightily surprised if any local police would be silly enough to remove him simply because you wanted it so.)"It became a safety issue for me, the tenants and the property."Is there any relevant details as to *this* person??As a landlord, you should familiarize yourself with state law or consult with a local real estate attorney as to particular issues.
It may be that your only choice is to force the guy to be added onto the lease.

by **Arman** » Wed May 14, 2014 12:57 am

>If he is invited by the legal tenant is he considered a squatter?No way. He is a legit guest of your tenant, right? >But, what can I bring to a judge to support my/this argument?I have no clue, what evidence do you have of a substantial lease violation?Before you go too crazy, check: http://www.lsnjlaw.org/english/placeilive/irentmyhome/causeseviction/trchnine/index.cfmand see what you've got in a "cause", and see if it's an "evictable" offense. Now, that isn't the actual statute, but it conveys the basic sentiment of the way it runs in NJ, it's very pro-tenant. Note the extensive use of "reasonable" and "substantial". First thing I'd question as to whether your lease provision as to only named occupants is a "reasonable" provision, and from what you've posted so far, I don't see where your provision is reasonable. If you'd had said that the place is on a septic system or well that is only large enough to support a specific *number* of persons, or the place was physically too small for the *number* of persons (highly unlikely if we're only talking 2 people here), then you might have a chance, but I don't see it. Now, if he's harassing other tenants, selling drugs, threatening people, destroying the place, etc., then YES, you probably do have cause to evict the tenant, but I think you're going to need some good documentation of the misdeeds, and followed proper procedure re: notices to cease, etc. before you could proceed. I find it odd too that the police would actually remove a tenants' guest simply on your say-so. There had to be more to this.Please explain *why* the police removed him?

by **Aramis** » Fri May 16, 2014 5:28 am

Hold the phone! The person was not authorized to be living there (and I believe that is quite legal in many places) so the police appropriately removed the squatter.

by **Buegoneguig** » Sat May 17, 2014 4:27 pm

If by "applied for an eviction" you mean that you filed eviction paperwork without any other steps beforehand, you may wind up finding it tossed out.You do not say on what basis you filed for eviction; NJ law is pretty strict on this stuff.

by **Leron** » Tue May 20, 2014 3:36 am

I see everyones point.But, what can I bring to a judge to support my/this argument?If he is invited by the legal tenant is he considered a squatter?

by **Blaze** » Fri May 23, 2014 9:18 pm

It's contractual and the police shouldn't have done anything.

by **Brannt** » Sat May 24, 2014 3:24 am

I have already applied for an eviction, should I follow through or push back the date and send letter?

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