Need answer today about changing locks

Status
Not open for further replies.
M

MissNancy

New Member
I let a psycho move in on a month to month informal lease. 200.00 deposit and 15 days notice by either party. Yea...I know....mistake.
From the very first night, we have had problems....and after 2 weeks mutually agreed she would leave in 15 days. TODAY is the last day. Yay!!!

She asked to use the 200.00 deposit for these last 8 days in May and toward the electric bill. I agreed because I want her gone.

She said she would be here by 11:00 am to remove the rest of her stuff, and still has not showed...typical. She knew I had to work today.

I have new locks and want to put in today, so I can go to work. I do not trust her and am afraid she will steal stuff. Can I change the locks and ask her to call me so I can be here...or is this considered an illegal lock-out?

I will make her things available to her...anytime she shows before midnight, but do not want to miss work waiting on her, when she probably won't come until 11:00 PM? Thanks
 
Did you get this "agreement" in writing? If not, you can't change the locks. If you didn't do you "Notice" in writing in a manner that you can prove (like certified mail), then you haven't given her notice either.
 
However.... the likelihood of her doing anything formal that is significant enough to cause problems for you is probably pretty low. It sounds like she is pretty much broke and doesn't have the resources to make too big of a stink.
You at least have a verbal agreement.
If you are worried about your personal property then go ahead and change the locks. I would.
If she gets upset and calls police they won't be able to do anything to help her. She will eventually get in touch with you when you are home, her things, and leave.
If she should break in to get her property after you change the locks then you would probably have a tough time making a burglary report... so it really comes down to whether you think she is psycho enough to break in since you will be the one that ends up paying for the damage. She will be responsible for it, but won't ever pay it.

I would cahnge the locks though... and I would ask a neighbor to keep an eye out.
 
Follow the law.
Do not change the locks.
That is illegal.

She'll wise up or one of her friends will wise her up about eviction law.

Then she will be suing you for all manner of things.
 
Last edited:
Moose, in many jurisdictions is a crime to change the locks. You don't have to have money to call the cops!
 
In this case it would not be an illegal eviction. An agreement was made to be out by a certain date, and an agreement was made to pick up the property by a certain time. The OP held up their end of the deal.
This would not fly as a lockout. The locks were changed after the agreed time, not as a means of forcing the tenant out. It is a simple civil dispute over property. Police would not get involved.
Yes, it would help if it was all in writing for added protection, but this is small potatoes. It wouldn't go anywhere.
 
mightymoose said:
In this case it would not be an illegal eviction. An agreement was made to be out by a certain date, and an agreement was made to pick up the property by a certain time. The OP held up their end of the deal.
This would not fly as a lockout. The locks were changed after the agreed time, not as a means of forcing the tenant out. It is a simple civil dispute over property. Police would not get involved.
Yes, it would help if it was all in writing for added protection, but this is small potatoes. It wouldn't go anywhere.
Click to expand...


I've seen smaller potatoes made into potato salad.
Legally, even putting it in writing would have little legal effect in court.

It would have to be an addendum to the lease, to bear weight in court.
Otherwise, a court wouldn't have to take judicial notice of such writings.
It might satisfy an officer responding to a "911" call, but it wouldn't satisfy a judge.

This is the classic "A" said one thing, "B" said another thing that judges see everyday!
 
Moose, so what if either the op or the tenant is lying? What do you do with it then? There is no such thing as an agreement to leave your house that isn't in writing.
 
I'm just curious if OP was renting to a roommate or a tenant in a apartment she was renting. The difference will change the legalities of advice issues based upon FLORIDA ll/tenant statutes.
 
I'm under the impression they were in the same residence... the OP renting out a room. That is the reason for the concern over the OP's property.

JHarris... I'm not saying there isn't a potential complaint to be made against the OP... of course the tenant could lie. Under the circumstances neither party has anything in writing and it is one word vs the other... which is why I would expect it to be handled as a civil dispute over property, not as a landlord lockout.
 
If you take money from someone to stay in a room, they can magically become a tenant.

They no longer are a guest that you can summarily remove.

They can claim they are a tenant, and then they must be evicted, if they refuse to leave.
 
There is no question that it was a tenancy- but if the information given is correct then it really is a civil dispute over property, not an illegal eviction. For the illegal eviction the locks must be changed with the intent of forcing the tenant out, which is not the case. Here, the tenant left as agreed but still needs to recover property after the agreed time. The tenant didn't make it at the time that the tenant provided- it is the tenant's fault and she will have to arrange another time with the OP.

This is all very petty and informal- the police would not get involved with this, and the tenant would get the property back before anything ever got to court... it isn't as if the tenant is trying to stay in the residence.

It's safe to change the locks here. A complaint wouldn't go anywhere.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Share this page

Get a free case review from a lawyer
Back
Top