Renting Room Rights (renter, eviction, how much) - Los Angeles - California (CA) - City-Data Forum

moscas · 08-26-2016, 02:20 PM

We decided to rent two rooms in our house (one master that is very secluded and has its own entrance and another large room). Initially we were worried that we may not get a lot of applicants to choose from, so we set our prices below market rate. Given the fact that we have two kids and a dog (that btw, all sleep quietly through the night including dog), we lowered the prices even a little more. We wanted to rent on a monthly basis so they have the option to move out if they can't live with kids and a dog around. For the utilities we charge them a set price in addition to the rent. We have not provided our tenants with a lease agreement, just a receipt for their first month.

The problem with our renters now are the following. With one of our renters we do not feel comfortable because of how he acts (eg. was yelling at dog at 7:30 am to stop barking, leaves house immediately when we get home with kids). We don't really feel safe with our kids. In addition, he always has the air conditioner running when home, even on cold days.

The other renter seems nice, but the problem is the low rent. We saw that other rooms are priced $500 above what we are currently getting and we had many applicants. We originally marked this room for a higher price. The person now renting must have discovered the ad with the lower price we shortly had online and we expected to get the higher price he originally saw. But when he moved in, he handed the lower amount. I didn't know what to say and I felt I had to accept it but I now regret it, I would had chosen someone else otherwise. He brought some of his things but is not staying here yet because we need to put up the blinds. He did not want to pay yet for the utilities until he moves in. I gave him a receipt for the payment of the month.

Our questions are the following:

- What are our rights when it comes to terminating the tenancy of one of our renters or changing the price? They have just moved in and we have not provided them with a lease.

- Can we ask them for more money for the utilities since what is used is significantly above what we charge?

ryanms3030 · 08-26-2016, 02:35 PM

I'm not an expert but one of my coworkers had a similar situation. They have a 5 year old kid and were renting one room to a friend. The friend knew someone looking for a room so they decided to rent to that person as well even though they didn't know them personally. Renter #2 was a female who turned out to be a belligerent drunk with violent tendencies.

He said they had to go through legal eviction and took months to get rid of the person and they had no lease. But I guess because they had been paying rent that they were protected under some sort of squatter's rights or something. That was city of LA so might be different other places. Probably should contact a lawyer

This is a reason I would never rent rooms in my home to strangers. It's one thing if you have a rental property that you don't live in but LA and the world is full of nut jobs

Big-Bucks · 08-26-2016, 09:36 PM

As far as i know there is no rent control regarding residential homes (although you have to give them 30 days notice of an increase of less than 10% and 60 days notice of an increase of more than 10% I believe) and you have every right to evict them. If you want to kick them out then I'm not sure if you have to give them 30 or 60 days notice. If they become a squatter then it can take up to 3 weeks to win a court judgement. Hope you got a deposit!

When you offer a dead beat's rate of rent you will attract dead beats and problematic people.

Does this guy have a criminal record? With kids around you might have grounds to evict him faster. Talk to a lawyer.

thelopez2 · 08-27-2016, 01:21 AM

Be prepared for a very expensive legal lesson. You need to talk to a lawyer. They will most likely get the some protection as rent control.

strikefirefall · 08-28-2016, 02:26 AM

Go talk to a lawyer.

Some words of advice for next time, especially since you have kids.

Never rent to a stranger without doing a background and reference check. Doesn't matter how well you know the person, you make them sign a month-to-month agreement that states you are allowed to evict them with a written 30 day notice. Don't lowball your rent; advertise the price you originally want and see how much interest there is before you decide to lower the price. Having a set utility rate is typically a bad idea.