failure to maintain dwelling eviction

[steveoh]

What is the name of your state? Arizona


I recently purchased a home where I invited a previous roommate to move with me because she was in a financial bind. So on a verbal agreement she moved in. I own 2 black lab puppy’s, 5 months, and 9 months old. The younger of the 2 dog’s was given to me after I moved in to my new home. I found out this new dog has a love of digging, and that did not correspond with my ideals of my new backyard. Since the dogs were already on strict kennel training, I knew that would have to extend that to the backyard. I began only letting my dogs in the backyard with strict supervision. I have a dog run on the side of the house where I allowed them to roam freely unsupervised. Feeling secure now that they were under control, I went forth in replanting the grass in the backyard. I had no issues. My renter on the other hand did not subscribe to my ways of thinking. She began to allow my dogs to roam free in the backyard where they would dig up the work that I had done. I mentioned to her of the situation, and asked her kindly to allow them only in the backyard if supervised, or in the dog run unsupervised. She agreed. I replanted the damaged grass in my yard, and considered it over. But she did not comply. I came home from work about a week later and noticed that a palm tree in my backyard was dug to the roots, and that all the new grass I planted once again was destroyed. I asked her about it, and she denied leaving the dogs alone and said that she supervised there actions in the yard. I told her that she allowed that to occur, but she denied it. So I explained again, this time a little more in depth of the situation. I told her that if she did not want to walk the dogs the 10 feet to the dog run that she is to keep them in there kennels. She replied that she would submit to my rules. So I replanted the grass again, this time I purchased some netting and surrounded the landscaped areas to help prevent the attention to the wet grounds. A week goes by when again, I return from work and the backyard is in shambles. This time I am very angry. I tell her that she is not to allow my dogs out of there kennels and that they are my responsibility. She replied with that she would continue to let them out. I disagreed with that and I told her that I wanted her removed from my residence so that I may prevent further damages from my home. She disagreed, stating she was not in violation of rental agreement. We had some conversation and came to a conclusion as she was in tears that she would not allow this to happen again. So I agreed that she could stay, but to please comply with my rules of the house. She agreed. The very next morning as I got home from work I noticed the dog dishes on the back porch. I then noticed that the backyard was once again damaged further then before, this time deep holes were dug, indicating to me there were left out for some time. I went and viewed the damage and noticed that she attempted to fix the damage with a rake. I asked her about the damage, she denied everything and said she had no idea what I was talking about. I then filled out an eviction notice complying with Arizona landlord tenant act, and with a witness gave her notice to vacate within 5 day’s. She dishonored the claim, and said I was without merit. I then had to secure the kennels via lock and key to negate further damages. A couple days later I cam home from work, My dogs were secure in there kennels, and I let them out as usual. I put them in the dog run and went upstairs for an hour nap. When I returned from upstairs I noticed my dogs roaming freely in the backyard, and after investigating the run door noticed it was pushed open to hold it open. I asked my renter if she allowed them free, and she denied the claim. She has not agreed to vacate and is time for me to file the case, but I want to make sure that I am not wrong in my claims. I believe I have the right to protect my property.

So the question, although the dogs are my property, but yet they were under her control, and rules were broken and damages occurred time after time do I have a legal right of eviction based on renter not complying with rental agreement to maintain dwelling.

thank you.

 

[FarmerJ]

If you still have no written rental agreement then follow your states laws for notices to month to month renters and start the eviction process making sure that all communications with the roomate are done in writting and sent with at the least a certificate of mailing or on the other route registered mail and if the roomate wont leave go to the clerk of the courts in your county and ask to file for a court ordered eviction based on the tenant getting proper notice to vacate and failing to do so . you will pay the filing fee and the tenant can either prove to a court your notice was improper OR try to explain to a judge what part of the notice to move out they didnt understand . AS long as you made no error in giving proper written notice to vacate and have a provable means of delivery , if the judge sees no error made then the tenant will be given X number of days to get out or you will then have the privledge of following the rest of your states laws to have the tenant forcibly removed from your premise .

 

[steveoh]

Thank you for the reply. I have a written agreement , I wrote it on the third month because the tenant also does not pay rent on time. and I wanted to be able to add in a late fee to help encourage on time payment. I followed the law, I have given written notice of eviction, and it has expired. I was trying to find some legal help with knowing if my complaint would stand up in court. I have done all the eviction stuff by the book, I just wanted to know how I stood before I filed and went in to see the judge. I did not want this to backfire on me because I have never needed to evict someone before so, this is all new to me. Also if I may ask, durring conversation with the tenant she told me that she is moving anyways. But I want to know since she gave notice to me, and I have evicted her, when can I change the locks on my doors? I want to change them on midnight of the begining of the month. (if she is not out already)

thanks again

 

[Arizona Renter]

The following is if you have a written agreement with your tenant. Don't know if you've looked this up or not... I would look up this statute on your own to fully understand it. I only posted a few bits and pieces of it to make it shorter.

AZ 33-1368. Noncompliance with rental agreement by tenant; failure to pay rent; utility discontinuation; liability for guests; definition

B. A tenant may not withhold rent for any reason not authorized by this chapter. If rent is unpaid when due and the tenant fails to pay rent within five days after written notice by the landlord of nonpayment and the landlord's intention to terminate the rental agreement if the rent is not paid within that period of time, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement by filing a special detainer action pursuant to section 33-1377. Before the filing of a special detainer action the rental agreement shall be reinstated if the tenant tenders all past due and unpaid periodic rent and a reasonable late fee set forth in a written rental agreement. After a special detainer action is filed the rental agreement is reinstated only if the tenant pays all past due rent, reasonable late fees set forth in a written rental agreement, attorney fees and court costs. After a judgment has been entered in a special detainer action in favor of the landlord, any reinstatement of the rental agreement is solely in the discretion of the landlord.

C. The landlord may recover all reasonable damages, resulting from noncompliance by the tenant with the rental agreement or section 33-1341 or occupancy of the dwelling unit, court costs, reasonable attorney fees and all quantifiable damage caused by the tenant to the premises.

E. The landlord shall hold the tenant's personal property for a period of twenty-one days beginning on the first day after a writ of restitution or writ of execution is executed as prescribed in section 12-1181.

F. A tenant does not have any right of access to that property until all payments specified in subsection E of this section have been made in full, except that the tenant may obtain clothing and the tools, apparatus and books of a trade or profession and identification or financial documents including all those related to the tenant's immigration status, employment status, public assistance or medical care. If the landlord holds the property for the twenty-one day period and the tenant does not make a reasonable effort to recover it, the landlord, upon the expiration of twenty-one days as provided in this subsection, may administer the personal property as provided in section 33-1370, subsection E. The landlord shall hold personal property after a writ of restitution or writ of execution is executed for not more than twenty-one days after such an execution. Nothing in this subsection shall preclude the landlord and tenant from making an agreement providing that the landlord will hold the personal property for a period longer than twenty-one days.