Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in New Jersey
First off, I just want to clarify that I am in the state of New Jersey.
I have a few questions for you guys that I have been asking different police stations all over the county and keep getting different answers from each person I speak with. I REALLY need a solid answer from someone.
please read in full before responding.
A friend of mine was down on her luck and needed a place to stay. I told her she could come stay with me as long as she was not a freeloader. I said that she needed to contribute a small amount for the first month(1/2 of April) then a bit of a larger amount every month after that she was here, as well as a portion of the cable and electric since she was going to be using them. Rules of the house were clearly established and agreed upon. She moved her things into the spare room but waited until the last few days of the month and only gave me a small amount of cash (much less than I had asked her to contribute and was curiously close to an amount of money I had lent her prior, so i don't even think it was meant for house contribution). The cable and electric bills came for the first month but i was given no money. I started to notice my food disappearing at a MUCH faster rate than it normally would with just myself and my boyfriend eating it, so I became suspicious. Clothing and other items from the house started disappearing little by little as well (my house is super organized and looks like a museum, so I can tell when things are moved or gone). The next month came and went, but i saw no contribution to her staying in the house. At this point I began to politely ask her if everything was ok and if she had any money yet (I later found out she quit for feeling to 'bossed around' by her employer and she was receiving $ from a friend for food and whatnot). I do not like confrontation so I approached her in a polite, friendly manner about once a week. Almost every rule of the house was broken, then i noticed the smell of certain drugs in the house when I would come home. This issue was addressed but still continued. (being that i work with children i can not afford drugs being in my house OR by some manner it being in my system from second hand). This lack of consideration and non contribution towards staying in the house continued through the end of June. My boyfriend then took it upon himself to ask her for contribution to the household since obviously me asking did nothing. She started throwing a fit and saying that he had no right asking her for 'rent'. She stated that it was to stressful for her to live in the house with us harassing her for money all the time and she was going to pack her things and leave with no warning if we asked her for 'rent' one more time. This was on the 26th or 28th. As i was speaking with her (unknown to me) my boyfriend had messaged her sarcastically thanking her for eating all of a certain item of food he had not touched but had mysteriously disappeared. She then messaged me telling me what he said, with much exaggeration, and stating that she was looking for a new place to stay. She came to the house, packed as much as she could into a backpack, and disappeared. The first of the month came and she had not been to the house in days. After receiving a message from a family member of hers stating that she has done this many times b4 and, by her words, being told she was going to leave with no warning and she was looking for a new place to stay, we figured she bailed on us. I neatly packed up all of her things (finding many of my belonging mixed in with them), itemized them so she knew nothing was missing (I even left my things in there and put my name next to them in the itemized list so she would see that I KNEW she had taken them), and placed them on the porch. As i was finishing up she showed up at the house looking to gather a few more items, but i was unable to hear her knocking on the door and window because i had my headphones blasting. She had forgotten her keys and knew i was inside and saw her things on the porch so she got angry and called the police. After they escorted her into the house to remove the final items of clothing from the room I was advised to keep the inside doors locked but the porch open for her to get her things. She told the officers that her and I had a lease (untrue) and that she had been paying rent to live here (untrue). She even told them that she never gave notice of leaving and had paid rent for July (untrue) and was unsure for the reason of her being locked out and her things being packed up. She then started to accuse me of stealing her things, harassing her, and illegally evicting her. She then started calling my place of employment trying to convince them that I was stealing money from them and calling my landlord trying to tell him stories to anger him and get me evicted. When that did not work she called the police again on my birthday to try and ruin my birthday party. She told the police I was "yet again, touching her belongings", saying that she had moved her things back into the house (untrue) and that she never said she was moving out. The officer advised her to go to the housing authority. She is now having friends lie for her and say that they were present while she handed me cash for 'rent' and that her and I had a verbal lease.
Now for my Questions...
(remember, I am in the state of New Jersey)
1. In MY situation, Is she considered a tenant?
2. In MY situation, Did I "illegally evict her"?
3. In MY situation, How long am I required to have her things on my porch b4 I toss them? (she is known for leaving her belonging places and picking through them little by little over months and months. I really do not want that to happen here)
4. Is there anything I am required to do in this situation that will help me?
1 Answer from Attorneys
You have a bit of a mess. You really need a lawyer to set this up and handle it for you. A few words over this internet bulletin board will not do it. Call me if you want me to assist, I do this kind of work. 201 820 3460 Robert Davies, Esq.