Clarksville, TN · Member since 2015 · 10 posts · 4 votes
For the past 5 months I had a friend and her boyfriend move in while my husband was deployed. They have been on a month by month rent payment because if something came up, i could give them 30 days notice and have my extra room back. Back in March I found out my 2 nieces and 1 nephew where coming to see me for the summer, and i told them that I would need the room back In May. Then again in April I officially told them that I will need them out May 1st, so that is a 60 day notice. It is April 28 and they have not found a place to live, and i have three children coming down in less than 17 days, and i need to get into the spare bedroom to put a bed, dresser, etc. For children to use. Now my question is, what can i do? Is it legal to charge them day by day until they leave? I cannot afford a lawyer and she is my friend, but I need this room back, and I am not going to tell my sisters kids that they cannot come because they will not leave. Thank you for reading, any solutions are appreciated!
Hi Jessalee:
So, is your husband active duty military (or on active orders)? Your mentioned him being deployed... My recommendation is to call the base operator where his military unit is and get the number to the closest JAG office. Tell the JAG officer your situation and ask for advice... JAGs are lawyers so even if they are new to TN law, they will get you the legal advice you need to properly resolve this. It will be free
If you don't know who to call, ask your husband or other military friends for help finding a JAG office number (or google it)
Talk to an attorney. Around here, you can go to the local Bar Association and tell them what kind of attorney you need. For $20, they will refer you to one that specializes in your area of law and you get 45 minutes with them to ask questions and get real answers. After that, you agree to their rate or go about your merry way. This is way better than most FREE consults.
The reason I see there being value in this is due to the chance there are differences for your situation that have not been addressed but MAY apply.
You are renting out a portion of your primary residence which you occupy. While most of the advice given about evictions is accurate, you might have an ace up your sleeve. While generally landlords are not able to discriminate against protected classes etc, you, can limit who you are willing to rent to. If you had a single family home that you did not live in for rent, you could not differentiate between a man or woman, but since you live there, you are well within your rights to limit it to a female or many other criteria that would make you feel safer. While this does not have a particular bearing on your situation, I bring it up because it may not be the only difference that applies to you since you are renting out a portion of your primary residence. There may be other loop holes or short cuts available to you that are not available to more traditional land lords like us. That is why I think meeting with an attorney will be good for you.
Is your husband active duty? Is your friends active duty? While I have never used JAG I have bee told they might be able to provide legal advise for free. If you friends military you can always use command. While that is a last resort it is a possibility.
yes, my husband is, no they are not. I am trying not to go to the JAG office, but if i have to I will. Thanks for the suggestion on using command though.
In case anyone cares how this is turning out, so after a scary ER visit i learned my heart was not regular and the condition could be stress and anxiety related, I went up to my friends boyfriend and told him they cannot stay longer than may 5th, no comprising or anything, and he said ok. the next day (today) I talked with my friend as she was packing and she said she would have liked a bit more warning that they needed to be out... i asked what did she mean, and she was like I just found out last week that we needed to be out at the beginning of may. I told her i gave them 60 day notice, and she said she didn't remember hearing that, I told her i have said it a few times and I am sorry you feel surprised but you still need to be out on the 5th :) lets hope everything goes according to plan! Thank you all for reminding me that this is my home, and they are over welcomed guests!