Inherited renter
 

I have a question for those of you that are storage rent savvy.

We just signed the deed on our farm and one large machine shed is currently occupied by a man that was renting from the owners.
We gave him a verbal heads up back in September/October that he would need to be out come spring.

Well since we now officially own the property my husband sent him a text giving him a notice to be out by April 1st. And said that if he can't be out by then we will be discussing rent. Since he has been storing stuff there for free. Of course he is ticked off. Saying my husband is being mean, and that he can't build a shed while the ground is frozen.
But how is that our problem? We told him before the ground froze that he only had till spring. He had time to get a foundation built before snow fall.

What would be the right course of actions should he decide not to move all his stuff out and refuses to pay? He has no contract with the previous owner, and I doubt he'll sign anything we come up with.

My husbands plan is to just replace the door and all locks come April if he doesn't pay rent and hasn't moved his things out.
Would that be legally in our right to do that? We don't want to keep his things and will be more then happy to give them to him, we just need that shed. We have a trailer that's not even ours blocking up our driveway filled with our things that will go in that shed.

How would you go about this?

Contact a Real Estate Attorney, who will give you the proper legal course to take. That is what I would do. That will be the best money you will spend regarding this issue!!!

You have a squatter, not a renter. Worse. Stick to your original plan. Don't back down and try to write a dated journal with all the discussions you have had with this person.

Send him a certified letter. Tell him that all of his belongings must be removed from your property on or before April 1, 2015. On April 2, 2015 he will be locked out of the building unless he signs a lease for $XXX.XX per month, paid in advance, not to exceed 3 months. If no lease is signed by April 10, 2015 at noon, he forfeits all property, and rights to said property to you. At which time, you will, at your own discretion dispose of, retain for your use, or sell any items left in your barn.

If he agrees to sign a lease, have a lawyer look it over, and have him sign it with you in front of a notary public.

I would not have signed the papers with that guy out of there.
At this point I would suggest talking to your county sheriff and ask what the law is. Did you have a lawyer for the title transfer? Call the lawyer. All of this would have been easier before the papers were signed.

That sounds like a really good idea. Much more official then just keeping the text messages between him and my husband.


@rustaholic
It didn't seem like it was going to be an issue at the time. Our mistake, and lesson learned.[emoji21]

Been there, A lawyer will cost you around $150. Have him draft a letter of eviction and he can also explain to you your legal rights. Best option. 2nd, I would not enter into any type of contract with this person as you are just expending the issue. Or, I would let your husband tell him he has until sunday to get his crap out of your shed or he can pick it up at the dump come monday, then throw his crap behind the shed and cover it with a tarp.

Police don't know the law, they just enforce their opinion of the law. Contact an attorney to find out what you legally can do about the stuff. In most states you cannot confiscate property when the stuff was there under an agreement with the previous owner.

Here is a link to rental laws in MN http://www.ag.state.mn.us/Consumer/H...LT/default.asp

It may be of some help. Every state has different laws, we had to follow TN rules/laws. It took a long time to get this tenant and all of her crap out. You do have to do it writing and make sure you can document it.

I doubt that either a verbal notice or text is going to stand up as official notice so my guess is that legally you haven't given him notice of anything at all. You need to find out what legal notice is needed in your area and do it officially, by registered letter or some other means more formal than a text. Since you can't do that until at least March 2 now you may not be able to get him out April 1 anyway.
If you do anything other than what's required in your state you'll be in more trouble than he will

Consult an attorney.

A couple hundred bucks now (Monday AM) could become a very good investment.

Not knowing the law and how it works in these matters can get expensive. Fast.

Forget the rent Send him a certified letter stating that you are the new owners of the property and he has 30 days to get everything else. I would pay the money to have an attorney deal with this. If there is no written contract this can get very ugly and expensive.

The closest thing I found on that document was page 25 but this is about renters. He has not been a renter as I understand it.
If he had a verbal agreement they will sure be looking at it from this direction.

25. UNLAWFUL EXCLUSIONS AND PROPERTY CONFISCATION
It is a misdemeanor for a landlord to physically lock out a tenant from the tenant’s rental unit or otherwise prevent a tenant from living there (for example, by removing locks, doors, or windows from the rental unit) without a court order. (181) A tenant who has been unlawfully locked out may petition the district court to get back in. The petition must:
Give a description of the rental unit. (182)
Give the owner’s name. (183)
State the facts that make the lockout or exclusion unlawful. (184)
Request that the tenant be given possession of the unit. (185)
If the court agrees with the tenant, it will order the sheriff to help the tenant get back in. If the court decides the landlord knew or should have known that the lockout or other exclusion was unlawful, the court can order the landlord to pay the tenant up to triple damages or $500, whichever is greater, plus reasonable attorney’s fees. (186) Also, a landlord cannot cart away or keep a tenant’s belongings for nonpayment of rent or other charges. (187)

I would do the above except for the part "unless he signs a lease for $XXX.XX per month, paid in advance, not to exceed 3 months. If no lease is signed by April 10, 2015 at noon".

You don't WANT him to sign a rental lease. Send him a certified letter that he has until April ? (a month from the time he gets the letter) to get everything moved out of the shed. After that date, he will have no access to what is left and belongs to you to do with as you see fit.

I agree with consulting an atty, but before you take official action, I would offer to have a sit down meeting with him. Pick a public place, buy him a cup of coffee, take notes, explain your problem/position that you need the space and you are not receiving rent. Ask him what he needs. If it is another 2 weeks and he will agree to that in writing, you'll be far ahead rather than needlessly going to war and having to spend even more $$$ on lawyers.

Maybe, just maybe, the two parties will be reasonable and find a mutually agreeable solution. If the mtg doesn't go well, you can still go to war later and only be out an hour of your time and $10.

You are already having problems and too many excuses from this guy. Why make more problems giving him the alternative of a lease? I can just see at the end of three months - more excuses.

Consult an attorney - make sure it's a Real Estate Atty. not a general atty.

BTW: storing stuff for free does not make a renter - don't call him that as it gives the wrong impression. If he were renting space from the former owner, he would have to sign a new agreement with you anyway.

Get a Lawyer!!
We rented our farm ground during 2010 and 2011 to a man who decided he did not want to rent it during 2012. We found another renter, but the first guy left three big pieces of equipment and a bin full of grain. For over two years we begged him to move his "stuff." Always had an excuse or said he would do it in couple of weeks, or next month, or etc etc. DH finally said "Do it now or I call a lawyer."
Obviously we were NOT believed. After one more month we visited a lawyer who sent the ex-renter a letter giving him a date two weeks away to move EVERYTHING or it would be considered abandoned property and we could do as we wished with it. The guy called us screaming and yelling--DH told him to call the lawyer and hung up!! Two days later everything was gone!!!!!
Well worth the $125 we were charged.

You don't have a renter, you have a friend of the former owner that left things on
his friends property. You need an attorney. I would not call him a renter, unless you agreed to rent to him and are receiving rent. The former owner should have should have had him remove his stuff before closing. The law is very state dependent, our opinions will not matter, unless someone is an attorney in your state.

got to the shop right now and move his stuff out of the shop in a pile and do not cover up or anty thing,then call not text him and say your stuff is piled up out side the shed and in a week from to day it will be burnt as you are not worried about it as you have not made an attempt to move!! do not call the law or a lawyer (it will look like he has some sort of permission to be there)hew is trespassing on your property

There's a good way to get yourself arrested.

Do yourself a favor and do NOT do this. You have already given the man notice that his stuff is safe until April 1st. Unfortunately, not the type of notice that will likely hold up in court for eviction, but notice that he could use against you were something to happen to his belongings.

Depending on the state, a person (or their belongings) can still be considered a "tenant" despite no rent being paid. Make it easy on yourself. Do NOT offer this person any kind of lease- you may just extend the whole issue. Contact an attorney regarding what legal notice the man needs to be sent to remove his property.

Go to your Magistrate office, they will give you the forms and tell you exactually what to do. You do not need a Lawyer----If he does not get his things out by the time giving, a court date will be set-up, if he shows or no-shows the Judge will give him a few days to empty---if he does not a Police officer will come to your place on a set date----while you and helpers remove all his things and set them beside the street----which means anyone including your self can claim ownership to the things---It happens that way here--in my County about every work day to the week.

If you just go in and start messing with his things without going through the Court----then you might need a Lawyer to get your Butt out of Hot water.

This right here is some of the dumbest advice you can take. Only a complete idiot would do this. That is called illegal eviction, and any items damaged, destroyed, or stolen after you set them outside are your responsibility. In other words he can sue you for their value amd would win.
Do yourself a very very big favor, do not take advice from itsb

Here once you have taken possession you have taken possession.
You own the property and every thing on it.
Unless it was spelled out other wise.

The magistrate MIGHT be helpful but the problem needs to be described accurately. "A friend of the former owner left stuff on my new farm. I want it gone and he won't remove it." Don't use words like tenant, renter, etc. Depending on local law, the implication that this was ever a real estate agreement of sorts might give the squatter legal rights, rightly or wrongly in the legal interpretation of the magistrate. In some areas, the magistrate might be a highly qualified judge, in others he might be Sheriff Andy Taylor and just try to make peace with all parties as best he can, and in others, you might have a very unqualified advocate for tenants rights.

That may be true in this case as well, but if it is valuable farming equipment, don't expect anything less than an expensive legal fight. Before things get ugly, trying to find a workable solution for both parties is a better approach.

I agree.

I would calmly tell them that "you want to work everything out before we have to take other steps that neither of us want to happen."

Yes, you might have to hire an attorney, which will be a smart move if he doesn't move the items. How about giving him a week to calm down, and then see if he will remove the items?

I don't know about you, but spending money and hiring an attorney are always going to be my last and final option.

The other side of this is what happens if he hires an attorney, and tries to sue you, but only after you've hired your lawyer? I'd hate to see you spend $600 in legal fees, lose a day or two of work, and have all of the stress in your life.

Life is too short for a mess like this...and it would be so much easier if you all could settle this easily.

http://ask-a-lawyer.freeadvice.com/l...pert-71619.htm

"The laws in all states in this country are that when one purchases real property legal title to the property passes to the new owner when the deed is recorded and the new owner owns all on the property he now holds title to unless the purchase agreement excludes certain designated items. The equipment that was on the property when your brother took legal title to it five years ago is your brother's equipment. It is still there and the relative who sold the property who owned the equipment never moved it off or made any subsequent claims to it after the sale. The deceased relative's conduct is evidence that he gave up the equipment when he sold the property."

Take it for what its worth but Its how I understand it.

I don't think the guy has much of a legal claim to it.
Considering most places take a while to sell he had more then enough time to make other arrangements.
Even if he claimed to be in the Dark as to the Sale, Don't think it would hold up.
He's been given a good option to remove it.
I would send out two certified letters, One to him and one to me. Stating exactly that.
Out line that the possessions left became property of the new owner upon taking possession of the property. But to Be fair you will allow him to retake ownership if all Items are removed by April 1st. After the 1st the offer will no longer stand and be rescinded, any Item remaining will be the property of the current owner and be
left to their discretion.

If it was stuff that would fit in a storage unit or shipping container I would be after him to get it out. Some thing larger and more valuable I might give him a little more time to move, not a lot though.

The advise to see a lawyer is a good idea.

Contact a lawyer for the correct way to handle this. The bleeding heart liberals have given tenants incredible rights and protections.

I am not a lawyer but I had an apartment building in St. Paul for 22 years. I have had to evict tenants. The advice given in the handbook above, section 23 and up, is a good start. From now on communicate with the him only through your attorney. If you do have to have a face to face with him then record it. They make electronic recorders now that will record 8 hours of audio or more. MN only requires that one party to a conversation (you) has to give permission for that conversation to be recorded.

The first question your attorney has to determine is, "is this guy a tenant?". Does he perform any work around the place or keep an eye on it? This could be construed as services in lieu of monetary rent which would make him a tenant. Do not sign a lease or offer to. This could give him legal standing as a tenant. Keep your eye on the goal which is to get his stuff out of your barn.

Let's assume he is a tenant. A tenant with an expired lease or a verbal lease is automatically on a month to month lease. In order to evict him , you have to give him a "notice to evict" before 31 days from the date of the eviction. Note that the time period is more than 31 days, not the 30 days notice of myth and fable. The notice does not have to include a reason and the tenant has nothing to base an argument on if you don't give one. Check with your attorney for the proper way to serve the notice.

If he has not moved his stuff, and the eviction date has passed, you have to file an eviction action with the court. It was something like $160 when I had to. The reason you are filing the action is because tenant has refused to leave after notice to vacate has been properly served and the tenancy’s last day has passed. The court will set a trial date and you have to serve the tenant with a notice of when and where the trial will occur. When the court says you can evict him you have to hire the sheriff serve him with the eviction notice and come back in a few days and actually evict him. The sheriff charges you for this. Once the sheriff evicts him you can change the locks.

You have to store his stuff. You can move it to a bonded storage facility or you can store it in place. If you store it in place, you have to fill out an inventory, in triplicate, in the presence of the sheriff and give the sheriff and the tenant a copy each. The sheriff charges you for this. It was $85 an hour when I did it. You are responsible for any damage to his stuff. I suggest you take lots of pictures of his stuff right now so he can't claim you damaged it.

He can demand that you give him back his property and you have to, unless you have put it in bonded storage in which case he has to pay you the costs involved in that before he can get it back. There is a time limit that you have to store his stuff before you can dispose of it. I think it is 90 days. You have to give him notice that you intend to dispose of his stuff. Yard sale anyone?

Worst case scenario, you will have your barn by fall.

I suggest that you try to get him to move his stuff without having to evict him. Record all conversations. Be adamant that he has to move his stuff. Don't take any money or offer him a lease. You would be money ahead if you got him to move his stuff by offering to help him move and payed for the first months rent on a storage locker.

Ain't we got fun?

"We just signed the deed on our farm and one large machine shed is currently occupied by a man that was renting from the owners."

This is the root of your problems. Look over the closing papers closely. "Your" problem may be the problem of the seller. If the closing papers have the normal boilerplate, the property may not have been properly conveyed, meaning you can have an attorney approach the seller for damages. When both the seller and squatter get legal notice, often things happen quickly.

If you didn't buy with some sort of limitation on claims, and you didn't buy title insurance, you gambled and lost.

Boy the advice here is all over the map.

Most landlord tenant law concerns renting property to the tenant for the tenant to live in. This is not the case here.

Most landlord tenant law hinges on a rental agreement. You don't have one here.

My 2 cents - go talk to an attorney. Your initial consultation should be free and you can spell out all the details and ask for a recommendation for a course of action from the attorney. Then you have some options and you are on a legal footing when you act.

Since there is no rental agreement, this probably falls under abandoned property laws. He probably will legally have six months to remove it before you can do anything.

https://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/...5.75&year=2014

345.75 ABANDONED TANGIBLE PERSONAL PROPERTY.

The ownership of abandoned tangible personal property that is not subject to any other provision of statute may be transferred as provided by this section.
If property has not been removed within six months after it comes into the possession of a person, it is abandoned and shall become the property of the person in possession, after notice to the prior owner. Thirty days' notice that the time period has elapsed and that the ownership will be transferred at the end of the 30 days shall be given to the prior owner personally or by certified mail, which is actually received. If the name of the prior owner is not known, and cannot be ascertained with reasonable diligence, three weeks' published notice shall be given in the county where the property is located. The prior owner or another person claiming an interest in the property may petition the district court to stay the transfer of ownership for a reasonable period to allow the removal of the property. The transfer is stayed while the petition is pending before the court.

If he has expensive machinery in the barn and you told him this last fall, it's not like he's forgotten all about it. I'm sure he'll get it out on time. Why the rush right now, anyway, when he still has another month?

Consult an attorney.

The rush is because the owners want to use the space they bought and the law may require them to go thru a multiple month process to take possession of what they own.

I seriously doubt procrastination is going to make this situation any better.

"Probably" is the problem. I agree, it is likely, but let an attorney make that call. Too many odd circumstances here for a sure answer.

Whatever you do, do not sign a lease with this fellow. He has already behaved badly, is already territorial over real estate that doesn't belong to him. You don't want to get stuck in a business arrangement with him.

You've already sent a notice that he has until April first to get out. You need to send a written notice, legally served, that tells him the date he has to be out, plus what you will be charging him for over-stay rent if he is still there after that date. Pick something that is too high for the building but not high enough to outrage a judge. If he could rent a similar barn for $600 a month, make the over-stay rent $900 a month.

I suspect that you have to start all over with the notice. A text is not a legal notice to vacate.

If he is not out, file immediately for an eviction. You can use over-stay as the grounds for the eviction. When you get the eviction, and you will, the judge will also award you the rent.

A lawyer would be a really good idea. If there are large apartment buildings in the area, ask the manager who they use for evictions. Many areas have a lawyer who does evictions in bulk. He doesn't charge much becasue he is at the courthouse doing 5-6 of them at a time.

Wow there is some incredibly bad advice in this thread.

Your local sheriff will be the one to force this, so a free chat with his office will point you to what is common in this state, in his experience, and how his office will proceed with such a deal.

A lawyer will dig out the state laws that apply here, and the process to follow. This costs a few 100 but will get you on the right path.

So far you've had some conversations with a jerk, but you haven't don't anything legal to protect yourself. You have given him some dates that will help him if this goes to lawyers, so be sure to say exactly what you have done and said so far if you go with a lawyer.

As mentioned, such issues always need to be dealt with when you sign the closing on the property; make everything cleared up when you take possession, everything on the property at closing date is now yours, any issues are the previous owners problem not yours. You didnt do that, bad on you. Now it will be a bit of a mess.

Is this old retired collector farm equipment, or currently used real farm equipment? He will be using the spring items by May, if there is harvest equipment it won't have to be moved until fall.

There is no way you should tow it out or consider it yours, and now especially since you gave him until April you could be considered on the hook if any damage happens to the stuff by then. Also you discussed this with him before you closed on the place, so clearly you knew the items were his, you weren't buying the stuff, and there is no way in heck you can claim the property. What horribly bad advice here.

Normally this works better, but you got a jerk there, and jerks seem to enjoy playing the games, so don't expect this to get better, and you need to follow the local law. Let the games begin.

Again, a word to others, deal with such issues at closing, not after you take possession.

Paul

This is all very overwhelming. But I really appreciate all the advise given.

My husband has talked to a lawyer to be sure he wasn't saying anything to this guy that was against the law. But after reading all comments I do think we will send a certified letter and have an attorney look it over and advise us.

I'm not sure what in there is really valuable. I know he races snowmobiles and has that shed packed with sleds and parts.

And those of you are right, I shouldn't say "renter" he was just a friend of the previous owner. At some point I'm sure they had him on contract, but they clearly told us no one had open contracts with them anymore. I thought that would make things simple, but I guess not. What a mess.