Evict a renter

Hi,
I own a house that is rented out, but I am thinking of selling the property. The rental contract ran out this month and it states that after that it runs on a month to month basis. How tough will it be to evict the renter? The property is in Ohio. Thanks for any info.
MfG,
Three4thsnuts

The answer depends on a number of local real estate issues that you will need to consult a local real estate attorney to get answered. (try www.legalmatch.com)

Many major cities have strong residential tenant's rights. What that means to you is that you cannot just give your tenants notice to leave if they are on a month to month contract. You need a reason which is permitted under the local code. This may be that you want to move in to the place or the new owner will... check with an attorney specializing in residential landlord rights in your area. These laws are locality specific, not state specific.

Good luck!

Do not confuse eviction with simply terminating a tenancy. Generally, an eviction is a legal process to retake property that a person does not have a right to possess (this can be due to breach of a lease, holding over, etc).

In your case, you may not have to evict your tenant at all. Since the lease is expired and the tenancy is now a month-to-month tenancy at will , you likely need only give your tenant the required notice to vacate (often, but not always, 30 days is required -- check your local ordinances).

If the tenant does not vacate by the end of the notice period, you will then need to evict him/her.

Contrary to what the other poster stated, generally you may end a month-to-month tenancy for almost any reason (so long as the reason does not violate fair housing laws).

This all depends on the location of the property. In many cities you cannot simply terminate tenancy as you would in a non-residential month to month lease. You need to evict. Otherwise rent control ordinances would have no effect.

I agree that rent control ordinances may dictate the circumstances under which a landlord may terminate a lease. However, that is the exception to the rule as most municipalities in the US do not have such ordinances. I qualified what I wrote with words like "generally," "likely," etc.

When I first read your post, I interpreted it to mean that such ordinances are the usual case. After rereading your post, I see that you qualified what you wrote as well by stating that "many major cities" had such ordinances (obviously, you're correct since many do). I just read it too quickly the first time...

I apologize as your advice is sound.