Calling all lawyers or legal gurus

MrsSmith2010
MrsSmith2010 Posts: 225 Member
in Chit-Chat
I may have a slight issue.

In February of 2011, my husband and I signed a one year lease. In January of 2012, I called my landlord and asked him if my sister and her son could stay with us for a few months while she got back on her feet. He said yes. I asked him if he'd like us to put them on the lease this time around. He said it wasn't necessary. He also didn't need my husband and I to renew our lease.

Today he calls and says we need to have a discussion. He saw my sister for the first time today and our discussion went a little bit like this....

"I've had that house for about 10 years. I've never registered it with the state as a rental property and I don't want the state nosing around in my business. When you asked if your sister could move in I didn't realize she had a baby and was an un-wed mother. I know your sister must be receiving some sort of state aid. Whenever that happens, the goverment wants to intrude on your business like it matters. I don't want them nosing around"

To which I responded, "Did you get some sort of letter or something? Stating she was on assistance and they need to interview you for some reason?"

"No. I'm just assuming she's getting state help. I wasn't aware she was an unwed mother with a baby. I don't want this causing all kinds of problems for me. I don't like being put in this situation. I hope you know what I'm trying to say."

"Are you saying you want us to move out?"

"Why don't you and your husband come over tonight and we can lay some cards on the table."



Okay. It sounds like he's kicking us all out, am I right here? And is he kicking us out because he's afraid his house will be inspected and they'll find somthing wrong with it? Can he do this? He seemed to mention "un-wed mother" about 3 times...is that the real reason he wants her and my nephew out? What the..... :noway:

Replies

  • MrsSmith2010
    MrsSmith2010 Posts: 225 Member
    What are my rights here... I guess. And what if he says it's okay for me and my husband to stay, but not her. Can he do that??
  • Ali_TSO
    Ali_TSO Posts: 1,172 Member
    I think he might be able to, since she's not on the lease... but that's just me, I'm no lawyer.

    My thing is, why would he just ASSUME she's getting state assistance? What a jack a s s...
  • clydethecat
    clydethecat Posts: 1,087 Member
    i am not a lawyer. this sounds like its an illegal rental, if he hasnt registered it with the state. he can get into a lot of trouble taking money for an illegal rental. from what i understand, if its an illegal rental, neither of you have the same rights as a legal rental. at least those are the rules in California,

    i would sit down and talk to him.. if your sister is not taking state aid, he should have no problems. i wouldnt threaten anything like going to the state to turn him in. just see what he has to say and try and work it out.

    good luck :)
  • SailorMoon007
    SailorMoon007 Posts: 93 Member
    I am not a lawyer, but I would get someone to really look at your lease with a strong legal background. It's hard to give advice, as leases can be so very different. If he hasn't registered the property as a rental unit, that would make me think that the lease wasn't executed properly either.
  • hikezilla
    hikezilla Posts: 174 Member
    Go to the meeting and tell him when your sister and the baby are moving out. Also tell him there will be no problem with the state as long as he's cool with her staying until that date. Otherwise you might all move and call the housing people anyway.

    We used to own several rentals, and I would never for a minute allow anyone to live in one of our homes that wasn't on the lease. The guy was lazy and now he's facing the reality of what he has done.

    As for him being a jack-azz, I think if he knows she's unwed, unemployed, and with a small child....the logical conclusion would be she is getting some taxpayer assistance. In Indiana that doesn't mean anything to a landlord unless he is getting federal section 8 payments. That hardly makes him a jerk.
  • hikezilla
    hikezilla Posts: 174 Member
    What are my rights here... I guess. And what if he says it's okay for me and my husband to stay, but not her. Can he do that??

    One thing you need to find out....how long can a visitor stay with you, before they are no longer a visitor. If she can hold visitor status then the landlord has no worries, and will probably back off a bit. He's obviously trying to screw the state out of some dough...they frown on that. I'd say you have his buns over a barrel.
  • christine24t
    christine24t Posts: 6,063 Member
    What are my rights here... I guess. And what if he says it's okay for me and my husband to stay, but not her. Can he do that??

    One thing you need to find out....how long can a visitor stay with you, before they are no longer a visitor. If she can hold visitor status then the landlord has no worries, and will probably back off a bit.

    This! On our old lease, it said something about how a visitor could stay for two weeks and that was it. Other leases are different. But it's an illegal rental then things might be different.
  • poustotah
    poustotah Posts: 1,121 Member
    What are my rights here... I guess. And what if he says it's okay for me and my husband to stay, but not her. Can he do that??

    I don't know what state you live in but in most states, you do not have to register a property as a rental unless it is a multi-family dwelling. Then it must be zoned as a multi-family dwelling. If the property is a multi-family dwelling and you have a lease that does not list your sister as a tenant then he can kick her out. That is his right as the landlord. If this is just a house that he owns and he's renting it out and you have a lease, then he can kick her out. In this scenario, the property does not need to be registered as a rental.

    It sounds like to me that he's just going to tell you that he's trying to avoid the tax implications of his situation. Either way, I'd be a runnin.
  • poustotah
    poustotah Posts: 1,121 Member
    Oh, I see you're in Iowa. Just look up the tenants rights for your state. Your rights as a renter are all online.
  • sweettthings
    sweettthings Posts: 157 Member
    There may also be some local municipal regulations that your current situation runs afoul of. I used to live in a town that was very strict that no more than 3 unrelated people could live together, period. They didn't want rental properties bringing down property values, and wanted to make the college kids basically go away.
  • MrsLVF
    MrsLVF Posts: 787 Member
    I think he might be able to, since she's not on the lease... but that's just me, I'm no lawyer.

    My thing is, why would he just ASSUME she's getting state assistance? What a jack a s s...
    The landlord is rude, and wrong. By the way, it is illegal to discriminate against families with children.
    To my knowledge, they only do inspections on section8 housing, so your landlord doesn't have to worry about that.

    However it's a fairly reasonable assumption that she would qualify for some type of assistance since she needs a place to live while she gets back on her feet isn't it.
  • MrsSmith2010
    MrsSmith2010 Posts: 225 Member
    We live in Iowa. My husband and I were the only people on the "lease" when we first signed it. The lease was a computer typed paper stating our names, move in date, rent each month, responsibilities as far as yard work and utilities and something about our cat and deposit. There was no stipulation as to who could or could not stay with us. He actually told us to not even renew the lease because he loves us as tenents. We are never late on rent, we don't have loud parties, we make numerous repairs and updates to the house, and we are respectful of the home indoors and out.

    My sister and her son live with us. They do not pay rent and we do not live in low income housing of any sort. She receives food assistance, child care assistance, and medical assistance. NONE of which require someone to come into our home or investigate living situations. She also mentions in her paperwork that she is living with a family member so it's not technically her residence according to the state.

    We're going to the meeting to explain her intentions of finding her own place once the new baby is born (she's just racking up the statistics here isn't she?) and she's found another place. She is on the waiting list for housing assistance but unfortunately that takes a REALLY long time. We're the only help she's got and unfortunately if she has to move, so do we or she'll never make it.

    I appreciate all the feedback. I really just wanted to know if I held any leverage at all here to at least make it the next few months. I pray that this is all a misunderstanding and once I convince him nobody will be visiting out home that he will let them stay :-/
  • dragonbait0126
    dragonbait0126 Posts: 568 Member
    You stated it's a 1 year lease. The big question, does the lease have an end date? If it does and he said you didn't need to renew, he can kick you out at any time because your past the end date on your lease. I don't care if he says you don't need to renew. You need to insist upon a renewal lease if there is an end date. Otherwise you don't have a case.

    If there isn't an end date on the lease, then go with your plan, talk to him, let him know he doesn't have to worry about and state visitors and try to work something out. My other peice of advice, attempt to determine a date that your sister will be able to get her own place. I realize this is easier said than done, but there should be a timeframe on how long it would take for the housing assistance to be approved (I could be wrong on this point but double check). If it will take 12 - 16 weeks, for example, then lay that out and add 2 - 3 weeks to find a place and be approved to calculate her goal move-out date. This should help pacify him that she isn't going to be there forever. If he truly values you as tenents, he'll provide a new lease agreement and work out the situation with your sister. Otherwise it's time to say bye-bye. The fact that he doesn't have a new lease, is paranoid the state is going to come around, and is so worried about your sister receiving assistance just seems a bit shady to me.

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