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How to Evict a Roommate in Georgia
Roommate situations often start out well. A few friends decided to become roommates to share expenses or a friend asked to move in because he or she needed a place to stay. Everything was great for awhile, but after time, things started to go downhill and now it's time for a roommate to leave. Except he or she has decided to stay. So now what? How is a roommate evicted in Georgia?
Evicting a Georgia Roommate Can Be Complicated
As living expenses rise, more people are living together as a way to save money. As a result, more people are discovering that living with a roommate is not all it's cracked up to be.
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Some roommates think it's okay to just stop sharing in expenses. Others want to party all night. In Georgia, getting rid of an obnoxious roommate, though, depends on a number of factors.
Is the Roommate on the Lease?
If the roommate is on the lease, then the only person who can legally evict the roommate is the landlord, but even he has to have valid reasons. These reasons usually include not paying rent, using the home for illegal purposes or otherwise breaking the terms of the lease in some way.
The exception to this is if the roommate is threatening or violent toward others in the home. If this is the case, then the court can issue restraining order and the roommate must leave immediately.
Keep in mind that a roommate on the lease is actually a co-tenant and has much right to live in the rental space as everyone on the lease.
What to Do Now?
Unfortunately for Georgia residents, options are limited if the roommate is on the lease. Politely asking to leave him or her to leave is an option, but this doesn't always work and can lead to more conflict.
If the roommate signed an agreement outlining rules of the house, everything from noise limits to cleaning duties, and he or she breaks the agreement, then he or she probably cannot be evicted but can be sued for damages in small claims court.
Examples might include the roommate having loud parties that interfere with getting work done if a roommate works at home or the roommate not paying his or her share of the utilities.
While these situations could be grounds for suing, the risk is suing the roommate may anger him or her but not enough to make him or her move out. Talking to the landlord to see if he can get the roommate to budge is an option, but most landlords are content to leave things be as long as they are getting their rent on time and their property is not being destroyed.
An exception would the landlord seing that the roommate is breaking the lease in some way, such as selling drugs from the home (illegal use of the property) or has a dog when pets are specifically forbidden in the lease. This is tricky, though, because the roommate could claim that the dog belongs to everyone in the house and the landlord could decide to evict everyone. The landlord might be a reasonable person (or company), though, and decide to evict only the roommate. If this is the case, it will take time. The landlord must follow the law, which involves giving the roommate notice of the eviction and time to remedy the situation.
For example, if the grounds for the eviction are that the roommate has a cat and pets are forbidden according to the lease, then the landlord has to give the roommate adequate time to find the cat a new home. If the roommate does this, then he or she cannot be evicted. He or she can stay in the home and chances are he or she will not be a happy camper. It is possible, too, that the roommate may just ignore the eviction notice and decide to stay in the home. In this case, the landlord will have to go to court to ask a judge to tell the roommate to go. If the judge agrees, then the sheriff will come to escort the roommate out of the property. If, though, the landlord loses in court, then the roommate can stay. No matter how annoying a roommate is, there are things that the state of Georgia says cannot legally be done to make a roommmate vacate a home. For example, he or she cannot be threatened and the locks cannot be changed to prevent the him or her from accessing the property. His personal property cannot be stolen. If any of this happens, the person or people doing it could be looking at criminal charges. No roommate is worth that. If the roommate is not on the lease, then there are more options for getting rid of him or her, although Georgia does not make this easy. This can be tricky, though. If the roommate is not on the lease because he or she came to stay without the landlord knowing, then the other people in the home might be the ones breaking the lease terms and end up facing eviction. 
Things That Cannot Be Done with Regard to a Georgia Roommate
Is the Roommate Not on the Lease?
If, though, the roommate has the landlord's express or implicit permission to be in the home - many landlords will let a girlfriend or boyfriend stay in the home without signing the lease, or they will turn a blind eye to an extra tenant - then the roommate can be evicted.
In Georgia, there are, though, rules to follow. The state makes a distinction between a house guest and a tenant. A house guest can easily be thrown out with a call to the police.
However, someone who has attained tenant status - which is fairly easy to do - has more rights than a house guest. Throwing a tenant out usually requires a trip to court.
Under Georgia law, a person doesn't need to pay rent or sign a lease to be considered a tenant. All he or she has to do is offer some payment or service in return for the roof over his or her head.
An example might be the roommate babysat a roommate's child, walked the dog or paid for some groceries. Wham. Suddenly the house guest is probably now a tenant under Georgia law. And if the roommate has been paying any kind of rent, then he or she is most likely a tenant.
To get a tenant out, the rules that a landlord must follow apply. This means serving the roommate with a written 60 days notice to move out. The notice must include the name of the roommate, the address of the property and the date he or she has to be out. Please verify this timeline with an attorney because it may change as Georgia statutes change.
If the roommate ignores the notice or thinks he or she has grounds to stay in the unit, then a dispossessory affidavit will have to be filed with the county's magistrate court. The roommate will receive a summons to appear in court and has seven days to respond to it. The court will then schedule a hearing.
The person initiating the eviction must present a clear case to the court and provide any relevant documentation. If the evictor wins the case, then the roommate has seven days to move out. If the evictor loses, however, then he or she must be prepared to be stuck with the roommate and have to pay his or her legal costs.
If the landlord is aware of the roommate and is a decent person (or company), then he might be asked to help evict the roommate. The downside with this that is the landlord - even a tolerant one - might just decide to evict everyone and start fresh. He would have legal grounds to do so if the roommate is not on the lease because the lease would have been broken by having the illegal tenant.
Bottom Line
The bottom line is evicting a roommate in Georgia is not easy. Evicting anyone anywhere is not easy, even for landlords with solid legal grounds. It is a complicated, contentious and often costly endeavor.
Get Help
Ask a Georgia Eviction Law Question, Get an Answer ASAP!
If, though, it is time to evict a roommate, then it is a good idea to talk to an experienced Georgia eviction lawyer before proceeding. One small misstep could mean that the roommate is not the only one looking for a new home.
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