A landlord who is having problems collecting rent from his tenant for the last six months is threatening to evict the tenant without a court order.

The landlord explained he does not live on the same premises with the tenant and each time he goes there to collect the rent, the tenant locks herself inside the house and hides from him.


locks herself in the house

"I have not collected a cent from the tenant for the last six months because each time I go to collect the rent, she is never home, or when she is there, as soon as I drive up, she locks herself in the house and does not answer me when I knock," the landlord said.

"Neighbours tell me that the tenant is inside the house but because she does not want to pay the rent, she is hiding from me. I don't have the patience and time to take her to court and I am planning to go there one day, take the lock off the door and put her things on the side walk.

"I worked very hard to buy my house and pay off for it so I could get some income from my pro-perty. It is really not fair to me to have to be undergoing all this stress from a tenant who is working but has refused to pay me," the landlord said.

"I don't know where the tenant is working now because when I call the workplace she had given me when she rented the premises two years ago, I was told she was no longer working there."

It is unfair for the tenant to refuse to pay you rent. You will have to first give her a month's notice to leave your premises and, if she refuses, then you can take her to court when the notice expires. You can face criminal charges if you evict her without a court order. If she refuses to answer you when you go to the premises, you can post the notice on the front door and it must state the reason for giving her notice. In your case the reason would be non-payment of rent.

Section 31(1) of the Rent Restriction Act states that "no notice given by a landlord to quit any controlled premises shall be valid unless it states the reason for the requirement to quit".