Temporary Occupant

Phil Querin Q&A: Bad Tenant Applies for Temporary Occupant

Question:  A former tenant who signed over his mobile but left the Park with almost $8,000 in back rent, unpaid property taxes and attorney fees is now applying to be a Temporary Occupant in a neighbor’s home.  Is there any way I can prevent him from living in the Park? If I deny him temporary occupancy, I’m afraid he will say he will be serving as a care giver for the current tenant.  What can I do?

 

Answer:   Does the former tenant have issues other than his lack of fiscal responsibility?  You could prevent him from being a temporary occupancy based upon prior conduct, etc., but not regarding his failure to pay rent, since “in theory” a temporary occupant is not one who is sharing rent, etc.

Phil Querin Q&A: Three Questions on Temporary Occupants

Question 1 The law and MHCO ocupancy agreement both state that a landlord can screen an occupant for conduct or criminal history but not for credit history or income level.  If after screening a temporary occupant, the findings reveal that they have civil case(s) and/or eviction matters relating to previous rental history where the derogatory rental reference is financial (not necessarily bad personal conduct).  Can this be grounds for denial? 

 

Phil Querin Q&A: Three Questions on Temporary Occupants

Question 1 

The law and MHCO ocupancy agreement both state that a landlord can screen an occupant for conduct or criminal history but not for credit history or income level.  If after screening a temporary occupant, the findings reveal that they have civil case(s) and/or eviction matters relating to previous rental history where the derogatory rental reference is financial (not necessarily bad personal conduct). Can this be grounds for denial? 

 

Answer 1

Not in my opinion.  The temporary occupant agreement concept is that the person is notgoing to be a “co-renter”. They are being permitted to come onto the space as an accommodation by the landlord to the current resident who wants them there.  If they are to become a temporary occupant, but your background check inadvertently reveals derogatory references related to financial information, and that concerns you, then limit the amount of time they can remain there, and take things a month, or six months, at a time.  You might consider having tenants fill out a form in advanceexplaining exactly why they want the temporary occupant there. If a tenant wants them there to share the rental obligation then you should know that beforeoffering the temporary occupant status.  If that is the case, then have them apply as a tenant.  If they don’t pass the financial background check, then reject them on that basis.       


 

Phil Querin Q&A: Temporary Occupant and Fair Housing Accommodation

 

Question: A tenant has asked for her daughter to be on a temporary occupant agreement. The tenant has recently been in the hospital and has returned home. She has not said she needs a caregiver at this point in time. The daughter is 40 years old and has three large dogs. She has applied to be a temporary occupant and has said that she will bring her dogs and if the park says 'no' she will get her attorney. Does the temporary occupant have rights? The park has a small dog policy - her dogs are clearly in violation. At this point there has been no mention of disability or request for reasonable accommodation. What are the landlord's rights? We suspect that the tenant will eventually say she needs at caregiver and hence the need for her daughter. At that point, once she has said "disability" or "caregiver" what are the landlord's rights? Can he say no to the daughter in both circumstances or only in first before the word "disability" or "caregiver" is mentioned?

 

 

 

 

Phil Querin Q&A: Temporary Occupant Overstays Her Welcome

Question. I have a question about the MHCO Temporary Occupant Agreement (MHCO Form 25). I have a friend who is a tenant in a park. He allowed a woman to move into his home with him. The landlord, the woman and he then signed a MHCO Temporary Occupant Agreement. I do not know what the duration was, i.e. month-to-month or for a fixed term.

 

 

After a while the tenant realized this was a big mistake and asked her to leave; she refused. As I understand it, the landlord has also asked her to vacate, and she again refused. The park owner does not really want to push the issue in court. She has told the tenant that he will have to have her legally evicted if he wants her out.

 

 

Recently, after she left town for several days, the tenant changed the door locks. Upon returning and being unable to gain access, she called the County Sheriff's Office. The responding deputy told the tenant/home owner that he could not require her to leave the premises. He even said that if she forced entry, she could not be arrested for the trespass. He said she had established residency at the home, and had full legal right to remain there until a court eviction occurred. She has been in the home beginning approximately December 2016. The woman has never paid any rent.

 

 

I would think she was committing a criminal trespass where either the landlord or the tenant revoked consent to her being at the space. What can he do? I am interested in case I have this situation in my community.

 

 

 

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