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Washington DC landlord tenant laws regarding owner occupied property
Anonymous2 views2 answers
I understand there is a distinction in DC landlord and tenant laws when the owner occupies the property.
The tenant resided in the property before the current owner purchased the property and refused to sign the new owners lease. If the tenant and the owner almost engaged in a fight what requirements must the owner meet to regain posession of their property?
The new owner takes title to the property subject to the terms of the lease then in place(something which he should've been fully aware of at the time of purchase) which means he will need to wait until the current lease either naturally expires or the tenant defaults in some material manner before this new owner may attempt to reclaim possession of the property, legally speaking.
Michael E. Hendrickson
Attorney & Counsellor at Law
211 North Union Street Suite 100
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
First of all, the tenant was not required to sign the new owner's lease if the prior lease had not yet expired.
However, if such was not the case and the previous lease had expired, and the tenant and landlord/owner cannot agree on the terms of a new lease, the landlord/owner must follow the required procedures to evict the tenant (if the person will not leave voluntarily)and regain possession of the property. This is done by filing the required papers in the Landlord-Tenant branch of the Civil Division of the DC Superior Court.
Above all, the landlord/owner must avoid physical confrontation with the ternant or self-help in evicting the occupant from the property which could result in substantial liability for the former.
M.E. Hendrickson, Esq.
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
