Did my landlord follow procedure correctly on 10-Day Comply or Vacate?

[cobrakai]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Washington

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Washington
Hello everyone. On Wednesday my landlord served me a 10- Notice to Comply or Vacate. It didn't really say that much, and there was nothing about amount owed or anything of that sort. I've lived at the place for over 3-years. We never did an actual lease agreement, no security deposit, or first/last month's rent. Basically I've been living there, taking care of her cats while she lives with her long-time boyfriend about an hour away.

She said she wants me out on November 3rd and I was served on October 24. Can someone be evicted on the weekend? What are my options to fight this? I don't want to end up homeless. (Have no car) Her rush to get me out is because she wants to rent it out to a family she has in line for almost 2x what I'm paying in rent.

Finally, what happens come November 3 or 4 if I'm not moved out? Does a Sheriff come to the house and tell me to get my stuff and be on my way?

I'm pretty nervous/scared so any help would be great appreciated.
Thank you all kindly.

 

[sandyclaus]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Washington

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Washington
Hello everyone. On Wednesday my landlord served me a 10- Notice to Comply or Vacate. It didn't really say that much, and there was nothing about amount owed or anything of that sort. I've lived at the place for over 3-years. We never did an actual lease agreement, no security deposit, or first/last month's rent. Basically I've been living there, taking care of her cats while she lives with her long-time boyfriend about an hour away.

She said she wants me out on November 3rd and I was served on October 24. Can someone be evicted on the weekend? What are my options to fight this? I don't want to end up homeless. (Have no car) Her rush to get me out is because she wants to rent it out to a family she has in line for almost 2x what I'm paying in rent.

Finally, what happens come November 3 or 4 if I'm not moved out? Does a Sheriff come to the house and tell me to get my stuff and be on my way?

I'm pretty nervous/scared so any help would be great appreciated.
Thank you all kindly.

The notice you received is the first step in the eviction process. If you fail to comply with the notice, then she still can't just come in and boot you to the curb on the 11th day. Only a court can order you to vacate the premises, and that requires the LL to file a complaint with the court to be heard before a court order can be issued. After that, if the court orders that you vacate, only the sheriff/marshals are authorized to serve the court's order upon you and forcibly remove you and your property from the rental premise.

If the notice was "Comply or Vacate", then it had to say SOMETHING about SOMETHING that you had to comply with. These notices are intended to give you an opportunity to cure some default in your rental agreement, and if you don't/don't want to do it in time, the alternative is for you to move out. These notices aren't just about nonpayment of rent.

That being said, exactly what is she telling you need to do in order to stay?

 

[FarmerJ]

Have you checked your states actual law for month to month renter notices like notice to move out compared to the one this LL sent you ? I suggest you do then if the owners notice to you is defective , your still going to have to move but you are free to argue that the notice was defective and LL must start over. Id also say its time to inventory your personal things , & store the list somewhere else and store your hard to replace documents and such off site. ( do plan on packing so start now even if LL were to have gotten the notice wrong the second time they sure wont )

 

[cobrakai]

Thank you very much for the replies. So my LL gave me a new Notice to Comply or Vacate. I hadn't said anything about the first one, but I
do have one now that states what I need to do to comply. I need to pay a certain amount (rent/back utilities) by November 3. So I talked to her
yesterday about the notice, and I asked her to please clarify the notice. I said basically, "so if I comply, I can continue to stay here and we can do up a real lease? (There was no lease agreement or any paperwork signed when I moved in)

She said I'm not sure, we'd have to cross that bridge when it comes. Like I mentioned earlier, she wants to turn it over to a property mgt. company and lease it to a bigger family/more rent$$. So even if I comply (which I wanted to do), I'm not even assured I get to stay there. So now I'm not sure what the heck is going on. She wants me to both comply and most likely vacate asap.

So if come Nov. 3 and I haven't complied to her standards, am I "safe" from actual sheriff's/law enforcement eviction until at the latest Dec. 1 so that I can find a new place? (I'm single/share custody of my son)

Thank you very much for all the help. It is much appreciated.

 

[CSO286]

Thank you very much for the replies. So my LL gave me a new Notice to Comply or Vacate. I hadn't said anything about the first one, but I
do have one now that states what I need to do to comply. I need to pay a certain amount (rent/back utilities) by November 3. So I talked to her
yesterday about the notice, and I asked her to please clarify the notice. I said basically, "so if I comply, I can continue to stay here and we can do up a real lease? (There was no lease agreement or any paperwork signed when I moved in)

She said I'm not sure, we'd have to cross that bridge when it comes. Like I mentioned earlier, she wants to turn it over to a property mgt. company and lease it to a bigger family/more rent$$. So even if I comply (which I wanted to do), I'm not even assured I get to stay there. So now I'm not sure what the heck is going on. She wants me to both comply and most likely vacate asap.

So if come Nov. 3 and I haven't complied to her standards, am I "safe" from actual sheriff's/law enforcement eviction until at the latest Dec. 1 so that I can find a new place? (I'm single/share custody of my son)

Thank you very much for all the help. It is much appreciated.

Are you behind on your rent? Your utilities? By how many months?

 

[sandyclaus]

Thank you very much for the replies. So my LL gave me a new Notice to Comply or Vacate. I hadn't said anything about the first one, but I
do have one now that states what I need to do to comply. I need to pay a certain amount (rent/back utilities) by November 3. So I talked to her
yesterday about the notice, and I asked her to please clarify the notice. I said basically, "so if I comply, I can continue to stay here and we can do up a real lease? (There was no lease agreement or any paperwork signed when I moved in)

She said I'm not sure, we'd have to cross that bridge when it comes. Like I mentioned earlier, she wants to turn it over to a property mgt. company and lease it to a bigger family/more rent$$. So even if I comply (which I wanted to do), I'm not even assured I get to stay there. So now I'm not sure what the heck is going on. She wants me to both comply and most likely vacate asap.

So if come Nov. 3 and I haven't complied to her standards, am I "safe" from actual sheriff's/law enforcement eviction until at the latest Dec. 1 so that I can find a new place? (I'm single/share custody of my son)

Thank you very much for all the help. It is much appreciated.

Ok, so you're behind on your rent. The notice you received is a Comply or Quit, meaning you'll need to pay the back rent before the end of the notice or face eviction. Note that the amount due on this notice CANNOT include anything but unpaid rent - that means NO utilities and NO late fees (unless those late fees are specified in the written lease as additional rent). You'll have to pay the back rent in full - not a penny less - in order to avoid further eviction action against you.

Payment of the past due balance reinstates your tenancy - FOR NOW. However, that does not prevent the LL from serving you with a notice to terminate your tenancy altogether after that. She could serve that anytime - even before the Pay or Quit notice expires - and you'd still be on notice that you would have to leave at the end of the termination notice. Unless she is demanding that you comply with some term of your rental agreement, she doesn't even need a reason to terminate your tenancy. If the LL has already set her mind on getting new tenants in there that will pay more in rent, then you'll have to move out anyway.

Non-compliance with the notices that the LL gives you doesn't mean that the sheriff comes on the day after the notice expires to kick you out. It means that the LL needs to take the next legal steps to evict you, which means filing for eviction with the courts. You would need to be served with court papers, and the court would have a hearing to determine whether or not to issue an order to force you out. It's an expedited procedure, but it will still take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, depending on whether or not you defend yourself in court to prevent the eviction. There is, however, NO GUARANTEE that it will allow you to stay until the end of November, so you should probably plan on moving as soon as possible if it comes down to that.