Eviction - Landlord Forum thread

Eviction by Thomas (Washington) on June 11, 2012 @11:29

I sent a 20 day letter to my tenant to move. He is not happy and is mad i accepted his rent for the month before sending him his letter. He thisk because he is on SS that he doesnt owe for this month. Anyway the day after he got his letter i went out to take pictures of the house as the reason i am evicting him is the total junk yard look of the house and over grown bushes etc. The city has cited the property twice because of it. WE are now a repeat offender because of him.
So he considered the taking of the pictures harassment and threatened to get a restraining order against me. I did not even go on the property just took them from the sidewalk.
Should i be worried? Can he get a restraining order for that?

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Re: Eviction by Anonymous (MN) on June 11, 2012 @12:17	[ Reply ]

No, he cannot get a restraining order. Nothing's stopping someone from taking pictures from a sidewalk. If you went on the property without 24 hour notice like is usually required, then he could get you in trouble for other things LL related, but not get a restraining order. If he tries it, the police will just deny his request and tell him to move out like he's been instructed to. I'm assuming here you did give him a cure/quit notice to take care of the lawn/junk before sending the eviction notice?

Re: Eviction

Re: Eviction by Bryan (Ia) on June 11, 2012 @13:19	[ Reply ]

You cannot evict without a court order. You can serve a C/Q notice and when the T doesn't comply you file for eviction with the courts. If you state law allows, you might be able to terminate tenancy for repeated violations, but you need to read your state's LL/T law to determine what issues, and what notices you need to serve. You can find your state's LL/T law from the links to right.

Re: Eviction

Re: Eviction by Monica (Wa) on June 11, 2012 @15:37	[ Reply ]

you have to go through superior court in Washington state in order to evict someone. You cant use small claims court. Im in Pierce county,not sure which you are in, but go to the superior court and buy an eviction kit. It costs arount $ 45.00 and all the papers are included. You can take them home and fill them out. The clerks at the court house are not able to help you fill them out. If you can find another LL who has gone through the process before maybe they will help. You can also look for an attorney, call around and get the best rates for a flat fee for eviction.

Re: Eviction by MrDan (Georgia) on June 11, 2012 @15:53	[ Reply ]

Your 20 day notice to vacate is correct, if lease is month to month or at the ending of the lease. If the tenant does not move , you start eviction proceedings asap. Note, if you live within Seattle, you must give a reason for terminating the lease. Check Seattle landlord tenant law for details. Do not worry about no notice to cure cleaning up the yard or the pictures, as this does not affect the notice to terminate the lease.