Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

Say you have a son who has no where to live. His mother comes to him and says you can stay at my house for as long as you need. The son offers to pay rent but the mother refuses it. The mother falls ill and moves into an assisted care facility. She files a lawsuit against the son to evict him, because she states that she wants to sell the house. Can the mother do this? Is there a landlord-tenant relationship when the son didn't pay any rent? Would it matter if after the mother moved out the son began paying all the bills like HOA dues and utilities?


Asked on 5/27/16, 2:24 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

MAYBE the son could cobble together a claim that he became a tenant once she was out of the house and he paid the bills, though without even an oral agreement between them, that he could live there if he paid for things, it would be a stretch. All of that, though, is really moot, because in the absence of a lease agreement for an extended period of time, he would at BEST be a tenant "at will" (formal name for a month-to-month tenant). An at will tenancy can be terminated on 30 days notice if it has been in existence less than a year, and 60 days notice if over a year. If he stays after notice to leave expires, he can be sued for unlawful detainer whether he established tenancy or not.

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Answered on 5/27/16, 10:56 am


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