Tenants claiming ownership

[scott in ca]

Jurisdiction

California

I've owned a rental home for 9 years, the tenants claim I was supposed to give them the house after a period of time, now I need to evict them so they are threatening to sue me claiming I promised them the house. Is there any way that could happen? I know we live in a crazy state but this sounds nuts.

Scott

 

[Disabled Vet]

Unlikely to happen. Unless you gave them something in writing. Puzzling that you would ask this question unless you may have put something in writing to them. Proceed with the eviction.

 

[adjusterjack]

Could they sue you? Sure. Anybody can sue anybody for anything. But they aren't likely to win unless, as noted above, they have something in writing from you. And even that is not a slam dunk.

Go ahead and evict them but make sure you follow the CA landlord tenant statutes to the letter with proper written notices and filings.

Codes Display Text (ca.gov)

http://www.alrp.org/wp-content/uploads/Eviction-Flow-Chart.pdf

If you don't want to deal with all the legal stuff, or the threat of being sued scares you, hire a lawyer to do it for you.

 

[zddoodah]

the tenants claim I was supposed to give them the house after a period of time

Based on what?

now I need to evict them so they are threatening to sue me claiming I promised them the house. Is there any way that could happen?

Of course there is. Anyone can sue anyone for anything (and it has nothing to do with California being "a crazy state").

If your intent was to request some sort of analysis of the merits of such a lawsuit, I would hope it obvious that that's impossible without a lot more information.

 

[scott in ca]

Thank you all, I did hire an attorney to handle the eviction, he didn't pay a lot of attention to the threatening letter, he essentially said the same thing regarding they would loose the case but if an attorney thought there was some "meat on the bone" for them the will try. He said it sounds like they're trying to shake me down for some money. I guess I was just confused that someone could claim that they have ownership in a property that they have no written agreement, name on title or even a cocktail napkin scribble. It's very unnerving and new to me to be threatened like this, I suppose it's helping to thicken my skin, I try to be a good person help everyone I can but this experience makes me a little more careful about who I allow in my property.

 

[adjusterjack]

this experience makes me a little more careful about who I allow in my property.

That life lesson was inevitable. I learned it the first year I had a rental.

 

[army judge]

That life lesson was inevitable. I learned it the first year I had a rental.

Amen, amen, amen!!!!!!!!!

 

[flyingron]

Even if you told them that, it's unactionable on their part. This sort of thing has to be in writing.

Anybody can claim they're going to so over anything.
It takes a little more effort to actually do so.
It takes a sound legal principle and a preponderance of evidence to prevail.