Advice Needed: Potential Eviction Situation

[Brian Siedenburg]

Hello!

I'm a smalltime landlord in Greensboro, NC with just one LTR at the moment. 

My tenant has been late on rent since September, but he has actually gotten me paid Sept/Oct/Nov/Dec, so I was hopeful he would get me January. 

However I just received a text last night that basically said he doesn't expect to give me January or February and would need several more months to get on his feet to "get caught up". 

His lease ends March 24th. He currently lives there with his girlfriend and their two small children. 

I went ahead and sent the 10-days notice for an eviction on February 6th, a few days ago. 

As Im a smalltime landlord with a moderate-low income (60k/yr), eviction fees and mortgage costs are really going to hurt. I still live extremely frugally so I have cash to cover it, but it'll be a set back, and im afraid of the condition of the place (I have not done a walkthrough yet). Ive driven by and if the exterior is any indication of the interior, its going to need some work. 

Can anyone think of any creative solutions here? My thoughts:

- Eviction but self-represent to avoid lawyer fees? Does anyone have experience with this? Perplexity/chatGPT said that with a simple non-payment case, self-representation is viable

- Cash for keys? Try to forgive some portion of the back-rent to get them out ASAP, get it presentable/fixed up, and get it rented? My fear is that they just don't have any place to go and wont leave. 

Any other thoughts? This is one of the more stressful situations Ive been in and would love some advice, thanks a bunch. 

[Drew Sygit]

Quote from @Brian Siedenburg:

Hello!

I'm a smalltime landlord in Greensboro, NC with just one LTR at the moment. 

My tenant has been late on rent since September, but he has actually gotten me paid Sept/Oct/Nov/Dec, so I was hopeful he would get me January. 

However I just received a text last night that basically said he doesn't expect to give me January or February and would need several more months to get on his feet to "get caught up". 

His lease ends March 24th. He currently lives there with his girlfriend and their two small children. 

I went ahead and sent the 10-days notice for an eviction on February 6th, a few days ago. 

As Im a smalltime landlord with a moderate-low income (60k/yr), eviction fees and mortgage costs are really going to hurt. I still live extremely frugally so I have cash to cover it, but it'll be a set back, and im afraid of the condition of the place (I have not done a walkthrough yet). Ive driven by and if the exterior is any indication of the interior, its going to need some work. 

Can anyone think of any creative solutions here? My thoughts:

- Eviction but self-represent to avoid lawyer fees? Does anyone have experience with this? Perplexity/chatGPT said that with a simple non-payment case, self-representation is viable

- Cash for keys? Try to forgive some portion of the back-rent to get them out ASAP, get it presentable/fixed up, and get it rented? My fear is that they just don't have any place to go and wont leave. 

Any other thoughts? This is one of the more stressful situations Ive been in and would love some advice, thanks a bunch. 

 Desperate people, do desperate things - why have you been acting desperate?

We send eviction notice EVERY time a tenant doesn't pay by Due Date.
- Why weren't you?
- If you only have one tenant, you can fill out the form oncxe and save it, then just change Date(s) and Amount Due!

Why are you desperately waiting for January rent in February?

The damage to the property is already done! 

How long does it take in NC to evict?
Compare that additional time for lost rent to Cash-for-Keys amount to consider.
- NEVER give Cash-for-Keys upfront! Tenant will cry that they need the money to move, but once you give it to them - they have no incentive to move and your back to court process.
--- You can also make it part of the Cash-for-Keys requirement that the property be "broom cleaned", meaning no debris left behind.

Given your previous desperate waiting mistakes, I'd hire an attorney to handle this.
- Go to local courthouse and lookup Landlord-Tenant cases and write down the landlord/plaintiff attorneys listed over & over again. Contact them and ask how much they charge as these eviction specialists will be far cheaper than a "general" attorney.