Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

Problem tenant

Our problem tenant signed a one year lease in April. She's never once been on time with her rent, and when she does pay, it's never in full, always with an excuse about waiting for a commission check to clear. She keeps a dog in her apartment, even though the lease specifically prohibits any pets. When I've confronted her about the dog, she denies having it, then says she was only taking care of it for a friend. i actually saw her carrying the dog in a blanket from the building to her car one day, and served her with a three day notice, only to get a long and convoluted excuse about her taking care of it for a friend. The other tenants have complained about her playing loud music late at night, as well as the dog barking, and we gave her a 30 day eviction notice, which prompted angry phone messages, alledging racial discrimination and harrassment because she's African-American. On the 3rd of this month (her rent is due on the 1st), we received a money order with a partial rent payment as well as a note copying the FBI and the NAACP. She hasn't bothered to notice that one of the other tenants is an Ethiopian woman and that my partner is an African-American Puerto Rican. How do we get rid of this problem tenant?


Asked on 10/07/05, 10:54 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Robert F. Cohen Law Office of Robert F. Cohen

Re: Problem tenant

1. Give her a three-day notice to pay or quit and don't accept rent after the notice expires;

2. Give her a separate three-day notice to abate or quit (dog and loud music).

The notice must contain formalities and specificity for the dog and loud music. Feel free to e-mail me for a sample.

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Answered on 10/07/05, 11:45 pm
Philip Iadevaia Law Offices of Philip A. Iadevaia

Re: Problem tenant

The previous lawyer, Mr. Cohen, gives a good example of notifying the tenant of her breach of lease. If you're not in a rent controlled area, and the 30 days has expired on the 30 day notice, then you can proceed direcly to a lawsuit. Then you can accept what rent she's paid and still evict her. You won't be able to sue for back rent though. However, just getting rid of this trouble-maker is the goal. Good Luck.

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Answered on 10/09/05, 2:35 pm


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