questions & answers

Question: My 35 year old son lives with me, but recently I've been having two problems. The first is he keeps his room so filthy, it's unhealthy. Clothes all over, along with food containers over r, which will lead to insect problems that I don't want in my home. The other problem, recently he has been bringing over a girl that I don't want in my house. She comes in and uses the shower, my hair and bathing products. She brings her dog, that is destructive. I normally have no problems with his friends, both male and female, but I don't trust her, I don't want her and her dog here. What can I do legally

Answer: If a person is (or could be considered to be) entitled by a rental agreement – even just an oral agreement – to occupy the dwelling, then in theory that person is a tenant (A.R.S. 33-1310(16)) who therefore has a right to be provided with 30 days’ written notice by the landlord (A.R.S. 33-1375). The safest option when it is unclear whether the person is a tenant or merely a guest is to treat them as a tenant by giving them 30 days’ written notice stating that the rental agreement will terminate and they will need to vacate by the end of the following month. (The landlord should keep a copy of this notice for their own records and ideally have proof of its delivery to the tenant (for example an email or a witness).