Hello NLers
I would like your insights into how to go about ejecting tenants after they were given eviction notices which has now lapsed.
The property in question is two 3 bedroom flats
Both tenants received 6 months eviction notices which lapsed in February though their rents lapsed in November/December 2011
They approached the agent for a 1 month extension grace [end of March] which he [agent] granted unilaterally without the landlord's [my guardian's] consent nor documentation of the request
My guardian is suspecting the 2 tenants are acting out a script to elongate their stay in consonance with the agent due to his foot dragging and lack of integrity in granting the 1 month extension
I want to suggest to my guardian ;the disconnection of the flats from PHCN mains, changing of the main gate's padlocks and stopping of water to the flats once March ends this weekends to drive home the point the tenants are unwanted
Yet I would like to receive insights from others who have encountered such challenges and how they solved it
Also if there are other legal ways one can go about this [so I can offer this advice to my guardian]
Thanks a bunch in advance

Very simple, contact your nearest property lawyer and he will take the matter up. Since their tenancy has validly expired, You issue an Owners intention to recover premises within 7 days notice to them. Its no longer a quit notice from the landlord but an Owner's intention to recover premises. After that you file same at the nearest rent tribunal nearest to you presenting all the documents showing that the quit notice is valid and voila the judge gives judgement in your favour to throwout the tenants using court sherriffs. But it could take you between 1-3months (Justice is slow) lol

Cheers

1

@ lawyer, always on point. Thanks for your reply. God willing, look forward to doing biz with you sometime in future.
Seems I may not have to use rent tribunals nor court sheriffs. I hear 1 of the tenants has started moving already though my fingers are still crossed on the other. If I may ask [so others can learn], if a tenant decides to act funny, can he/she be compelled to pay for his/her illegal extra time in the property?

@ Sprumbaba, you bad O! lol.
I guess stubborn tenants call for extreme measures.

I need help on this issue, please I need a good lawyer that can help handle some of my tenants.. They are already taking a fool of themselves...

@ Lawyer,please email me directly on :- greatolanshi@gmail.com


Cheers...

@ Ochukoccna...By operation of the law, their tenancies have expired and therefore their merely squatters. As much as i will not advise use to employ self-help cos it can only complicate matters, you will do yourself good if you can give the 7 days notice as rightly pointed out by Lawyer and file necessary papers at any rent tribunal or Magistrate Court as the case may be. In your claims for eviction of the affected tenants, you can then make case for staying over rent which in law is referred to as Mesne Profit. Goodluck.

Legally, use the courts to evict the person after a 7 day notice.

Illegally, call some boys, pack all their property keep for streeet.

garnetty: @ Ochukoccna...By operation of the law, their tenancies have expired and therefore their merely squatters. As much as i will not advise use to employ self-help cos it can only complicate matters, you will do yourself good if you can give the 7 days notice as rightly pointed out by Lawyer and file necessary papers at any rent tribunal or Magistrate Court as the case may be. In your claims for eviction of the affected tenants, you can then make case for staying over rent which in law is referred to as Mesne Profit. Goodluck.

if, say, the rent expired months ago, must you give a 6 month notice before the 7 day notice, or is a 7 day notice alone sufficient to file at the rent tribunal?

Thanks.

Sprumbaba: Go and buy a tipper of sand a dump it at the entrance of the gate (The car in the compound wont go out. Their visitors go dey climb heap of sands). Knock out like 4 windows each from each side. I swear they will pack soon. The subject is you are renovating the house.
I did this in 2000 at a 3-story building at Oritshe Street in Ikeja and it worked like a charm after the eviction notice served lapsed.

..... Bad guy!

@ yamakuza....I don't get the interpretation of your 'months ago'. In Law, a yearly tenant is ordinarily entitled to a 6 months notice to seek fresh accommodation elsewhere but in the circumstance (which i presume you are referring to) that the tenant stays beyond the legal 6 months notice period and the landlord also did not issue the traditional quit notice, the 7 days notice will suffice. However, the court will only presume that the requirement of the initial notice would have been met by reason of inaction of the tenants. To my mind, this is calling equity to bear on the issue. In any case, all depends on the facts and circumstances of every case. No court would want to direct a landlord to issue the traditional 6 months notice to quit to a tenant who has 'stubbornly' stayed beyond his term. Having said this, landlords should always do the right and legitimate things. Equity aids the vigilant and not the indolent.

Where is the house located?. If it is in Lagos, you will have to check the Tenancy Laws applicable in Lagos State. There are lots of technicalities invoved when dealing with tenants in Lagos State. However if it is not in Lagos then follow @lawyers advice

@ ochus
u titled it 6months n u claimed d rent expired in nov/dec.
Ur argument is not concrete, else u lose d case.

S

Take legal jugement @ their back,an those baileave wil come 2 pack their properties,if there is an elongation,some of their properties wil be sold 2 pay d landlord back 4 any elongatn incured.

@poster,
if they too get their lawyer and both of you begin to drag the case, it may not be so fast as some people have said.
especially when they have genuine issues.
what I can advice is that, get a lawyer, who will write and invite them, then the lawyer will advice you whether you have a good case or not.
landlord may not win all the time. do not try to remove their windows, they can sue you before you sue them ooooooooooo

U̶̲̥̅̊ ₪☺ D̶̲̥̅̊ε̲̣̣̣̥γ̲̣̣̥ shit? D̶̲̥̅̊ε̲̣̣̣̥γ̲̣̣̥ put shit ‎​Fø̲я̅ dem house front na. Renew it evry few hrs and wait 48hrs and feed M̶̲̅ε̲̣̣̣ bac.

Y d ejection?

garnetty: @ yamakuza....I don't get the interpretation of your 'months ago'. In Law, a yearly tenant is ordinarily entitled to a 6 months notice to seek fresh accommodation elsewhere but in the circumstance (which i presume you are referring to) that the tenant stays beyond the legal 6 months notice period and the landlord also did not issue the traditional quit notice, the 7 days notice will suffice. However, the court will only presume that the requirement of the initial notice would have been met by reason of inaction of the tenants. To my mind, this is calling equity to bear on the issue. In any case, all depends on the facts and circumstances of every case. No court would want to direct a landlord to issue the traditional 6 months notice to quit to a tenant who has 'stubbornly' stayed beyond his term. Having said this, landlords should always do the right and legitimate things. Equity aids the vigilant and not the indolent.

soapdish: @ yamakuza... Ordinarily when a tenant fails to renew at the expiration of his rent and is holding over, it is called Tenancy-at-Will. In such circumstance, the Landlord issues seven days Notice to Quit followed by Seven days Notice of Owners Intention to Recover Possession, thereafter he can apply to the court.

However, this is not the Law in Lagos State. Τhe Law in Lagos State provides that a Tenant ie a yearly tenant must be given a six months Notice to Quit and nothing less. It is not so easy to evict a tenant in Lagos State going by the new Laws.

Thanks a lot for the explanations.
[s]
Just needed to be sure if a Lagos tenant who has been owing for say, over 7 months (without notice, due to pleas & promises) still needs another 6 months (notice) to find new quarters.

Now, i'm clear on the issue.[/s]

What you shout do is to serve him 7days of owners intention to recover his premises. After which you go to the magistrate court and prove your case. U can easily win if your moving into the house or your renovating the place if not it might linger. One thing is sure no matter how long the tenant stays he/she must pay you the extension fee termed mean average which is your rent and some interest.

@ Lawyer, thanjs for all your effort in ensuring that all the nairalanders are properly legally guided. I just stumbled on your statement that a legal notice shoud be a minimum of six months. But the issue here is that I've alredy made a mistake and hv already served a tenant with a three months notice. But I am skeptical and afraid he might not wanna honour it at the expiration of his pay. Now Mr Lawyer, if he eventually refuses to honour the three months fin, what wpuld you advise me do?

Tenants in Lagos can be especially wicked if they do not plan to leave
1: They can take the matter to court over e.g Bore-hole was promised as part of rent but none provided, No Security etc - They can live on your property for free for almost 6 months because the matter is in court. this is just being modest.
2: If they get wind that they are truly under real threat of eviction in the coming months or weeks, they will start looking for alternatives - not without setting your house on fire
3: They can sub-let to another tenant without your knowledge and this guy will sue you for a full year's rent

The best you can do is always at the begining.
Set an Iron-Clad Contract Specifying Tenancy Period, Conditions for Rent. Make sure to include the at the 6th Month, you will serve an eviction notice effective after the 12th month of tenancy. This they will sign. for future references. As soon as the tenancy expires, call in the Police, Evict them and RenovateRepaint, Increase your Tenancy rates and continue the trend

thanks lawyer for all the information. please i would like to find out about the six months you mentioned, will it be paid for or not, i mean will the rent be part of the last six months the tenant paid for? i asked this because i have always heard this but i don't know for sure what is right, when i was getting married my room apartment i was occupying expired, i asked the landlady to give me sometime, like two months to round up and moved my things to my hubby's house but she refused and threatened to throw me out, so i got angry and picked some things and locked up the house until six months time before i went to move my things,they called me on phone and i threatened to deal with them if they touched my door and they never did. so i want to know if i acted rightly!

3: They can sub-let to another tenant without your knowledge and this guy will sue you for a full year's rent

Please can you explain why the party a tenant illegally sublets has right to ask the landlord for rent he did not collect or unaware of . And how do you evict this illegal "squatter"?

@ soapdish, the house is in Lagos

yamakuza:
if, say, the rent expired months ago, must you give a 6 month notice before the 7 day notice, or is a 7 day notice alone sufficient to file at the rent tribunal?
Thanks.

Exponental: @ ochus
u titled it 6months n u claimed d rent expired in nov/dec.
Ur argument is not concrete, else u lose d case.

Their rent was to have lapsed Nov/Dec, however they were served the ejection notice in September and since it was a six month notice thus ending in February. Because they spoke to the agent that's why it's now March ending.

My guardian though is saying that your 6 months notice extends past the expiry of your rent doesn't exempt you from paying for any extra rent time you use. I don't know if this is legally valid. Can any one well versed in property law explain this so we all learn?

Silvaspecs: @ Lawyer, thanjs for all your effort in ensuring that all the nairalanders are properly legally guided. I just stumbled on your statement that a legal notice shoud be a minimum of six months. But the issue here is that I've alredy made a mistake and hv already served a tenant with a three months notice. But I am skeptical and afraid he might not wanna honour it at the expiration of his pay. Now Mr Lawyer, if he eventually refuses to honour the three months fin, what wpuld you advise me do?

Please let me chip in this: You CANNOT USE a tenants "contract period" as "Quit Notice" period.
What do l mean?
Lets assume Tenant has paid for a full year, January to December. Within those period, he is in a valid "Lease Contract" with you. He MUST enjoy that ONE YEAR without disturbance, that is the law. You cannot be "in contract" with a Tenant (jan - Dec) and then issue a Notice mid-way (July to December), The Tenant will simply ignore your notice 'cos it is INVALID.
Your Notice can only be effective AFTER the contract has lapsed, i.e from January the following Year.
Furthermore, After the six months and he refuses to leave, you will issue One Month, after one month, you will issue 7days , if he still refuses to leave, you will apply to the courts to recover your premises.
This is when "conditions" to recover premises will come-in. See Below.

lagerwhenindoubt: Tenants in Lagos can be especially wicked if they do not plan to leave
1: They can take the matter to court over e.g Bore-hole was promised as part of rent but none provided, No Security etc - They can live on your property for free for almost 6 months because the matter is in court. this is just being modest.
2: If they get wind that they are truly under real threat of eviction in the coming months or weeks, they will start looking for alternatives - not without setting your house on fire
3: They can sub-let to another tenant without your knowledge and this guy will sue you for a full year's rent

The best you can do is always at the begining.
Set an Iron-Clad Contract Specifying Tenancy Period, Conditions for Rent. Make sure to include the at the 6th Month, you will serve an eviction notice effective after the 12th month of tenancy. This they will sign. for future references. As soon as the tenancy expires, call in the Police, Evict them and RenovateRepaint, Increase your Tenancy rates and continue the trend

Your "iron-clad" contract can be unenforceable, if it is "illegal" a-priori!
How cn you collect money for one year and make the Tenant sign (he will say under duress, mind you) a contract of eviction just six months into the contract? Its Null and Void ab-initio joor!

If the One year finishes and teh Tenant does not pay or renew his tenancy, after three Months, his Tenancy is "Determined at law" and he is entitled to only 7days Notice, after which you head to court for recovery.

If you are the one that is refusing to collect payment (on the basis that you have served him a quit notice)then this condition does not apply since he will simply go to "mediation centre" to inform them that he is trying to pay his Landlord and he is refusing to collect money. They will invite Landlord for "discussions" and would serve as witness in court, if need be, to show that you are the one who refused rent.

Assuming you gave valid notice (6, 1month and 7days) and he refuse to leave.
You will argue in court that you need the flat for your son or personal use. This is a very valid argument. Others like renovation are difficult to prove.
If court upholds your argument, they will still ask the Tenant "when he can reasonably move out". He will ask for another 3months!

At the end, he would move out but he will pay all outstanding rent sha.
If he does not move out after that, court will order Bailiffs to move him out.

Please, dont ever do "self help" as a lot of people are suggesting here, especially in Lagos. I have seen a few Landlords get jail time for this, of recent. Things have changed so much and the era of "jankara Judgement" seems to be over. You cant even do the "impersonation" scam of hose years anymore now. Courts are wiser, tenants are smarter and rules are stricter! I hate to see a Landlord jailed by a tenant for issues like this!
Any tenant that sublets your house is just silly because you can actually lock the house and direct the "new squatter" to deal with it, with he former tenant who sub-letted the place. Its not your headache, its between the two of them. No 'squatter' can sue you for a full year's rent since it is in the rent agreement that the house cannot be sub-let. Simples.
I hope my contribution was useful to somebody.

Lastpage!

gud topic,this is real and i want help too,we have a tenant in ogun state, he pays monthly rent, and he has refuse to pay rent since september last year, now, we gave him quit notice for 2months since february, it will expire in first week april, we intend to give him the 7 days notice n the question now is, if he refuses to move out after d 7 days notice, what shd i do? we cant afford to get a lawyer cos it is just 2500/month, so we might be at loss if we get a lawyer. we intend to go n lock up his room n stay around overnight, plz help, The house is situated at ojodu berger to be precise.

Sorry, if l may ask: Is Ojodu Berger in Ogun state? Use to think its in Lagos.

Again, taking laws into your own hands can be dangerous except the Tenant does not know is right or have the means to enforce it.

From the look of your case, money will be an issue for both Tenant and Landlord!

E be like say na Police case be dis one
Report him to Olopa, greaze their Palm small make dem come give am ultimatum to vacate.

Otherwise use local enforcers to "worry" him small, he may get frightened and leave by himself!

Lastpage

Sprumbaba: Go and buy a tipper of sand a dump it at the entrance of the gate (The car in the compound wont go out. Their visitors go dey climb heap of sands). Knock out like 4 windows each from each side. I swear they will pack soon. The subject is you are renovating the house.
I did this in 2000 at a 3-story building at Oritshe Street in Ikeja and it worked like a charm after the eviction notice served lapsed.

You too sharp!!!

@Lastpage
Thanx, some parts of ojodu berger fall under Lagos,others Ogun state.Just trying to get advice b4 striking.

Esss: Legally, use the courts to evict the person after a 7 day notice.

Illegally, call some boys, pack all their property keep for streeet.

Dat's it!

Follow LAWYER's advice. Its sometimes takes up to a year or more for the court to give you the 'fanfare' guys to throw the tenant out. One of my customers (a custom officer) did this....He constructed a poultry in that compound,and sited it close to their windows,additionally,he tore the mosquito nets on all the windows.
Another landlord did this in Ojo area of lagos. He took normal legal procedures,He beheaded an agama Lizard,put it in a calabash and placed in front of their door. Man they moved their things out that very week.
My brother follow legal procedures though,and always try to know the kind of people u rent ur house to.