LL's: Do you also serve the 3 day to pay or quit to the co-signer as well as tenant?

Depends...do you want to retain or boot out the current tenant?

The purpose of having a co-signer is getting paid. If you get paid before trial, then sometimes you have to dismiss the case and let the tenant stay. But if you want the tenant gone, then I wouldn't make any noise and leave it up to the tenant to inform the co-signer. If the co-signer remains ignorant and the tenant does not pay, then you get your eviction and can go after the co-signer to get paid later.

Sid- I would like to retain the tenant for the month & eventually evict. She's been a problem and I'm tired of it. She's late on rent and no returned text,email or calls. Her co-signer is a lawyer and a decent guy. I actually rented to her because he asked. (never again).

" Do you also serve the 3 day to pay or quit to the co-signer as well as tenant? "

NO.

3 day Notice to Pay or Quit is addressed only to persons in possession of the property. That is who will be evicted. Cosigners do not get evicted, they only get collected from.

To collect from a cosigner AFTER the eviction, you must go to court (Small Claims) and get a judgement against the cosigner, and then try to collect on it.

Sometimes, it is useful to let the cosigner know about any problem and maybe they will convince the tenant to mend their ways.

As the name implies-- CO-- together. You didn't get the CO to sign the lease-- that's what you get when you deal with attorneys. U been HOODWINKED.

Guaranteed there will be WAY WAY more to this story.

ahh, but he did sign the rental agreement! Each page initialed too.

and he is a decent guy!

So serve them both at the address --- the lease address.

Since you insist he's a NICE guy-- then call him and give him a heads up. Then the nice guy will show you how nice he can be!!!!!!!

ST,

What is your goal? Mine is to be paid so let’s do everything we can to be paid.

We send the 3 day text to ALL persons involved. Learned this the hard way and was reminded by a post here earlier.

LEGALLY if you inform one party that is adequate.

BUT...

That does not get me what I want.

Sometimes the contact person does not tell the others and I don’t get the money. So cover all your bases.

So "he" is NOT a cosigner? He's a cotenant?

If you evict the tenants, you must ensure that EVERYONE goes: tenants, co-tenants, squatters, visitors, relatives, EVERYONE or you don't really have possession of your property back.

So, you must evict everyone, starting with a 3-day notice. You must not only serve them, but the notice has to be addressed to them.

PS

(Not to beat you up but eyes wide open...)

As you manage thru this remember you made a decision to ignore some of your screening criteria to accept her and HOPE the extra person will make up the difference. You ACCEPTED some with known problems and now that time has arrived. Rocky roads are inevitable.

Stay on top of this. It will NOT get better.

AND...

For what it’s worth, we do not rent to lawyers. They love to weild their lawyer swords over LLs and can easily make your life miserable, even the ones who seem decent on the surface. Don’t be decieved.

Parents co-singed a lease for their college son. Son said the rent was paid, it wasn't. Dad said, "Leave me alone, my son paid the rent"!

Served son with 3 day notice, then had the process sever deliver the eviction papers. Won case, son evicted.

Then I sent a letter to the father to pay up. He refused saying my son no longer lives there, try to collect.

Had the Sheriff serve the father at work for case in small claims court. Won that case too. Father still didn't pay. Took dad to debtors court and made him produce all financial records. Tax returns, bank accounts, etc. Then I had the Sheriff levy his account. Finally collected.

Thanks everyone.

Learned some valuable lessons & I do know "no good deed goes unpunished.."