Tenant Behind on Rent and Doesn't want to Move

[Jinyu Shao]

Hi all, 

I have tenant who is renting out a room in my house. She's just renting out the room for herself and she has been behind on rent for three months. 

She has been slowly paying couple hundred dollars every few weeks and it's been going for months now. She has a lease which is expiring in June. Her financial situation didn't seem to have improved and she is still perpetually behind on her rent. 

I don't want to involved an attorney because the eviction process in New York is so complicated and costly that it's not really worth it. I spoke with her once and she mentioned that prior to this she was living in a shelter. I sympathize with her situation and has been trying to find a solution that works for both of us. So far no much has changed, she's still behind on her rent and there isn't much we can do. 

Has anyone else dealt with similar situation/tenant before? What can I do to get her to move out without going through an eviction.

Thanks!

Jinyu

[Theresa Harris]

Offer her a bit of money to move out or tell her you are going to have to evict her.  The longer you let this drag on, the worse it is going to get.  If she can't get her act together in 3 months, she isn't going to...trust me.  She can find a friend or family member to stay with or a less expensive place.  If she's working, she should be able to afford the rent on a single room.