evicting a roommate

[rissywood]

i have an apartment in upstate ny, i am the only person on the lease, but rented out two of the extra bedrooms. one roommate has not paid rent in three months, smokes pot in the house, and has all but moved to another place. he has left some of his belongings here (as he has no room in his new place) and refuses to give me his key back. he told me that since he applied for foodstamps here that i cannot evict him without taking him to court because he gets mail here. i called my local police department and was advised to change my locks and put his items outside if they were not picked up by the agreed upon date. when i told my roommate this he became physically threatening and told me he would just break in if i changed the locks. the policeman also said because i am the only one on the lease i don't have to go thru the courts....


what do i do???

 

[Gail_in_Georgia]

Your problem is that although you do not have a written lease with this tenant, he has resided there (and his receiving mail is proof of this) and did (up until the last three months) pay rent. Thus, he is a tenant, albeit a "month to month" one.

Attached are the guidelines for your state on how to end such a tenancy.

Keep in mind that New York state (and city) tends to be a fairly tenant friendly state. As such, if you simply toss his things out this would be considered an illegal eviction and he could, in turn, sue you for the value of his items.

It is better to go the legal route to get him out, then turn around and sue him for the three months owed rent...

http://www.rentlaw.com/ny/monthtomonth.htm

Gail