Does my ex, who still lives in the same apartment, have to pay half of the rent and bills?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Does my ex, who still lives in the same apartment, have to pay half of the rent and bills?
We still live in the same apartment even though we broke up. When we were together I was paying all of the bills, including the rent. Now that we are broken up, she is still not paying her half even though I have brought it up to her. Can I legally force her to move out if she doesn’t start paying half of the rent and
bills?
Asked on June 11, 2017 under Real Estate Law, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
Is she on the lease? If she is, she is legally obligated to pay her share of rent and you can sue her for the money if she does not. However, you cannot evict her (one tenant cannot evict another) and if the full rent is not paid, whether by you, by her, or by a combination of the two of you, the landlord may evict you: no matter is happending between the two of you, the lanldord is entitled to the full rent.
If she is not on the lease but you are, you can remove her. If she was paying half the rent when you were the tenant and she was not, she was a subtenant of yours and you could evict her, as a subtenant, for nonpayment of rent
If she was not paying anything (which appears to be the case) and you were on the lease, she was just a guest of yours. You can ask her to leave any time and if she does not, you can bring an action for "ejectment" to remove her--you have to do by "ejectment," which is "eviction for nontenants who had been alllowed originally to live there. Consult with an attorney about how to do this (or about how to evict, if she was a subtenant of yours.)
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.