Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: Homeowner right of requesting an unwelcome guest to leave

If your unwanted guest is a ''lodger'' and has been staying for some time as either a day-to-day lodger, week-to-week or month-to-month, you simply give written notice to them to move out within the applicable period (i.e. a day, week or month). If the lodger does not leave within the prescribed time period, you can then call the police and have them removed for trespassing. Good luck.

Re: Homeowner right of requesting an unwelcome guest to leave

It depends. If the "unwelcome guest" is simply someone who has come to the homerowner's house and then refuses to leave, the police can be called, and will likely remove the guest. If, however, the person has been living in the house and claims a right to be there, the police will not remove them.

If the unwelcome guest has been living in the house, you will need to give them either a 30 or 60 days notice to vacate (depending upon how long they have been in the house). If the "guest" then fails to move, you will need to file an unlawful detainer action.

A third alternative is if the unwelcome guest is threatening someone in the house, or is abusive. In that sitution you may be able to obtain a restraining order preventing them from going to the house.

You should consult with an attorney in your area that emphasises real property practice. During your consultation, the attorney can ask you questions, and you can provide more specific information about your situation. Only then can you obtain the best advice from an attorney on your particular situation.

Re: Homeowner right of requesting an unwelcome guest to leave

As the previous answers point out, someone staying in someone else's home can have one of three legal statuses: guest, lodger or tenant.

If the person is a tenant, they must be evicted. Guests, when they are dis-invited, become trespassers and police removal is a possibility, although police are reluctant to make on-the-spot legal decisions where there is no breach of the peace and no immediate threat to public safety. Removing a lodger doesn't require the same kind of formal eviction process as must be used with a tenant (see below).

A lodger is different from a tenant; a lodger is one who shares a residence with the owner for a consideration, and doesn't have a specific assigned space separate from the owner and his family. A tenant has his/her own defined space (room apartment, house, etc.); and a guest is distinguished from the others as someone who has another residence elsewhere, and usually doesn't pay (but "other residence" is usually more significant than "non-paying" since some tenants don't pay and some guests may make contributions. It's more of a "smell test" than a set formula or rules that can be strictly applied, but see Civil Code section 1946.5(c).

A lodger can be removed merely by giving notice terminating the lodging arrangement; thereafter, if the lodger remains on the premises, it is an infraction under the Penal Code (section 602.3) and the (former) lodger is subject to arrest and fine.

Your question raises another possible issue. You refer to the person wishing to be rid of the guest as the "homeowner" and you inquire about the "homeowner's rights." The rights we're discussing here are the rights of the person entitled to possession of the house, who is not necessarily the owner. For example, if the owner has leased the house to a tenant, it is up to the tenant, and not the homeowner, to deal with guests, lodgers and subtenants. Of course, the lease may limit or prohibit lodgers, subtenants, and possibly even guests (although that could be illegal). Nevertheless, in such a case the homeowner-lessor would have legal recourse only against the (primary) tenant, and generally NOT against the tenant's guests, lodgers, sub-tenants, etc.