What can I do if a family member is living on my property illegally?
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What can I do if a family member is living on my property illegally?
How would I go about collecting rent from a relative who has not been appointed personal representative of an estate? How do I confirm that it still belongs to me without interacting with said relative directly? I have been appointed by a district court as personal representative in the matter of the estate of my deceased father.
Asked on November 23, 2016 under Estate Planning, Colorado
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
If the relative was a rent paying tenant, then they have to continue paying rent--to your father's estate, since he passed away. If they don't you can have them evicted for nonpayment of rent.
If they were not a rent paying tenant, they were a guest (presumably of your father). A guest may be asked to leave at any time by someone with authority over the property, which in this case would be you as personal representative. If he or she will not leave when asked, you can bring a legal action for "ejectment" (eviction for nontenants) to remove them. In either case, you are strongly advised to retain an attorney to helo you: ejectment and eviction can be very technial, and any errors in the filing can delay the process. (Also, since this is a relative, having an attorney will help depersonalize the matter, as opposed to you doing it directly.)
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