Evicting Tenant Not On The Lease

[Gardner]

Hi Mike

In one of my rental units I have an individual that is not on the lease but was allowed to stay in the unit by the tenant on the lease.  They have now had a falling out due to non-payment of rent.  This escalated to the point where the police were called. The non-lease tenant was told by the police that since he's been a resident for 60 days(I believe that was the timeframe) he is given the same tenant rights as the indvidual on the lease.  I need to get rid of the non-lease tenant.  He has not paid me anything(which he again wasn't on the lease) nor paid the other tenant.  My understanding is that if I want him gone I need to go through the legal eviction process.  However, everything I have read pertains to evicting tenants who are on the lease.  According to the lease-tenant, the non-lease tenant has broken a window and put a hole in the wall during an argument.  He apparently uses drugs too.  Do I have any recourse w/o going through the legal eviction process?  I am in Texas, fyi.

[Gwylim]

My advice in these situations, which are less rare than you might think, is to evict everyone. From your standpoint as landlord, the rent must be paid. The tenant on the lease can't simply find a roommate, have a falling out, and fail to pay part of the rent. So, you'll need to evict the tenant named on the lease, and "all other occupants"(which will address the unauthorized occupant). If your tenant wishes to remain, and you feel inclined to allow that after this fiasco, you can always release to the same tenant after the eviction.

As for your last question, I doubt you have any options other than eviction. However, I'm in California so not very familiar with Texas real estate regulations. I do understand that Texas has self-help provisions for landlords, but don't know what extent they are. For that, you'll need to contact a local real estate attorney.