Want tenant evicted. Is this doable under the current rent ban?

Question

Hi everyone,

Looking for some advice on getting a problem tenant out of my Georgia rental asap when I have a federally backed loan and under the eviction ban for rentals at the moment.

The violations include the following:

- Animals in the property - added a pet addendum to the lease last month where pet fee is counted as rent)

- Non-leased occupant living in the home - had the person apply but have not added them to lease yet as credit is horrible and under the assumption that the person who signed the lease did it for the non-lease occupant as they would not qualify.

- Late Rent - Understand there is nothing I can do about this at the moment due to the evection ban.

My basis for eviction would be the non-leased occupant and possibly animals in the property though that is a tricky one as it states in lease that pet fee is considered rent (which they have not paid) and I can not evict due to late rent payments?

Open to any thoughts or suggestions.

Thanks.

Jeff Copeland · Answer

The eviction ban implemented by Section 4024 of the CARES Act only applies to non-payment of rent. So, barring any state moratoriums on evictions (of which there are plenty right now), technically, you can still evict for other violations of the lease not related to payment of rent.

But the conventional wisdom is don't try to use an eviction for pets or unauthorized occupants as cover for non-payment of rent. That will quickly come to light in court.

If you added a pet addendum, then it sounds like the pet is no longer an issue, or grounds for any legal action.

That leaves you with the unauthorized occupant, However, if you have been accepting rent payments despite knowing about the unauthorized occupant, you've essentially given them permission based on the legal principle of waiver.

(I am not an attorney and I'm not giving you legal advice, but see this video for more info: https://vimeo.com/356466356 - Note that the video is based on Florida, so you'll need to confirm the notice requirements for Georgia).

Bottom line: You probably need to seek legal advice from a local attorney on this matter, and getting an eviction through the courts right now may be a tall order.

When does the current lease expire? Because you may have to bite the bullet until you can non-renew the lease.

Jeff Copeland · Answer

Just a point of clarification: There are no evictions right now (though at least July 28th, at which time you can give a 30-day notice) for non payment of rent on "covered" properties, regardless of what your local municipality is doing. This is a federal law (an ill-conceived poorly written one, but the law of the land nonetheless): https://vimeo.com/407748080

Jeff Copeland · Answer

Noted. I'm not advocating for the CARES Act, I'm just surprised how many people are unaware of the eviction moratorium buried in it.

And I assure you, tenants and their shady lawyers will not be suing the magistrate, they'll be suing the property owner and the PM!

Here in Florida, the loser pays the attorney's fees in landlord tenant cases, so there are plenty of eviction-chasers who will take these cases on retainer (since it's a EASY win - blatant violation of Federal law) just to rack up legal fees.

There is no case law on any of this, so it's a crapshoot!

John Underwood · Answer

My brother just did an eviction. If the tenant wants to complain they can sue the Magistrate.

I'm sure the Magistrate is aware and decided they had the authority to start evictions back up.

Wesley W. · Answer

This is a prime example of how a term lease can work to the landlord's disadvantage.

The burden of proof to evict for those lease violations is going to be high. I would not renew their lease (whenever the term was up) and then evict them as a holdover.

If you had a month-to-month lease you could part ways with 30 days notice.

John Underwood · Answer

My area is back to doing evictions.

Call your local Magistrate and see if you have to wait or can at least get the paperwork started.

Want tenant evicted. Is this doable under the current rent ban?

Want tenant evicted. Is this doable under the current rent ban?

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