Can I evict my roommate?

by Gibrian Malicki-Sanchez, B.A. (Hons), J.D.

If you are a tenant who has allowed a roommate to move in with you and now want the roommate to move out but that roommate refuses, what can you do?

A roommate is a person who is not a tenant because the roommate is not on the lease agreement, is not subletting the rental unit, or has not been assigned the lease. A roommate may have moved in with you to help you with the rent payment or for any other reason. Now your relationship with the roommate has become bad and you want that person out.

The landlord cannot evict your roommate because that person is not a tenant. If you call the police on the grounds that you do not consent to that person to be in your rental unit, that person is trespassing, and you want that person removed, the police may tell you to hire the sheriff to evict that person. The sheriff will not evict the person unless the sheriff has a court order for eviction. Such a court order is only applicable to tenants and since your roommate is not a tenant, there will be no court order against your roommate.

Tenants are prohibited from changing the locks of the rental unit. However, if the tenant does change the lock, a key must be provided to the landlord immediately. With the lock changed your roommate will no longer have access to the rental unit. Make arrangements to have your roommate retrieve their personal property.

Conflict is not a comfortable situation to be in. However, if you are at loss as to what to do and the authorities will not assist you, this may be your option of last resort.