A friend and her 13 year old son were living in their car (with their dog.) I offered to allow her to stay with us, in our guest bedroom, until she was able to earn the money to get her own place. There is no written agreement; she pays no rent; she showers at the YMCA instead of here; she keeps, prepares, and eats no food here; she receives no mail here (and in fact uses her son's address for jobs); she knows the code to the garage, but does not have a key to the house; and only stays in the home to sleep. On the flip side, she once gave me $20 so I could pick up groceries (for us, not her); she has been here for five months; she does her laundry here; she keeps some of her personal possessions in her room, garage, and basement; her son occasionally showers here; she parks her car here overnight; and I once ordered a package in her behalf, in my name, to my address, from Amazon.
My problem is that she is doing nothing to improve her financial situation. I believe I am enabling her to not take financial responsibility. She hasn't saved any money for use as first/last months rent in a future apartment. In fact, she eats all her meals at restaurants and the store she works at, buys extra plane tickets for her son to accompany her on out-of-town business trips, and pays for hotel rooms when her work takes her to a location that is within driving distance but is not convenient. There are resources for her son here in town -- taking him along is a matter of preference. In fact, in several instances, she claims to have lost money on jobs. Yet she continues to pursue the same work. She has not looked for other work.
I am planning to tell her that she hasn't held up her end of the bargain: pursuing a better income and saving money in order to rent or buy her own place. I would like to give her an ultimatum. Either she works on improving her situation, or I will no longer allow her to live here. I am interested in helping, not enabling. But I do not want to step outside the bounds of the law. Last thing I need is for her to sue me.
Is she a tenant or a house guest? What are my legal rights? What are her legal rights? We live in Colorado.
My problem is that she is doing nothing to improve her financial situation. I believe I am enabling her to not take financial responsibility. She hasn't saved any money for use as first/last months rent in a future apartment. In fact, she eats all her meals at restaurants and the store she works at, buys extra plane tickets for her son to accompany her on out-of-town business trips, and pays for hotel rooms when her work takes her to a location that is within driving distance but is not convenient. There are resources for her son here in town -- taking him along is a matter of preference. In fact, in several instances, she claims to have lost money on jobs. Yet she continues to pursue the same work. She has not looked for other work.
I am planning to tell her that she hasn't held up her end of the bargain: pursuing a better income and saving money in order to rent or buy her own place. I would like to give her an ultimatum. Either she works on improving her situation, or I will no longer allow her to live here. I am interested in helping, not enabling. But I do not want to step outside the bounds of the law. Last thing I need is for her to sue me.
Is she a tenant or a house guest? What are my legal rights? What are her legal rights? We live in Colorado.
