"AITA for evicting our tenants of 22 years?"
Our son is 22 years old. When he was born we bought a second home, always with the intention of gifting it to him when he was an adult. It’s a modest home (2 bedroom bungalow, with a developed basement that has an additional room) about 10 minutes from where we live.
When we bought it we listed it for rent, and a lovely couple started renting. They went on to have 6 children. They chose not to move and continue living in the 3 bedroom home with the kids. The dad works, the mom stays home, important to note that we bought this home in 2000.
Even with a 15 year mortgage, the mortgage was quite low, and the rent not much more than the mortgage. We’ve only raised the rent 4 times in the 22 years they have lived there and the rent is still well below average for our area- I did look it up, an average rent where we are for a similar house is 2000-2600/month. Our renters have been paying 1300/month.
When they started renting we did talk to them, we did tell them this house was eventually for our son, we never actually expected to have the same renters for 22 years.
Our son graduated university in June, and has been staying with us since then. But he’s a responsible young man and we decided that Christmas would be a good time to gift him this home. At the beginning of September we talked to our tenants and gave them a 2 month election notice.
Figuring we’d have November/December to get the house cleaned an any repairs done.
Understandably they are not happy. They have been posting all over social media about what bad people we are, kicking them out, how they can’t afford to rent anything big enough for their family. Their oldest kid (19) even found my son on Facebook and sent him a horrible message (he had no idea we were planning to gift this to him)
Their Facebook posts have been shared in our local community groups and everyone is commenting about what “evil landlords” we are. AITA for evicting long term tenants so our son can move in?
Here are OP's edits in response to comments (a lot of people thought 2 months was not enough notice after 22 years):
We did mention gifting the house to our son when he started university. So we told them when they moved in in 2000, and when he started uni in 2018
It wasn’t a legal eviction notice. We also didn’t break the lease. 5 years ago they decided not to renew as they thought they might buy soon and moved to a month to month lease.
It seems 2 months is not enough notice. I have sent them an email giving them an addition 2 months, bringing it up to 4 months notice.
I sent this to my husband, he told me when he was there in April, installing a new hot water tank, that he told them (well the dad) that we’d likely be giving notice this summer
Here's what people had to say to OP:
NTA, they have rented from you for two decades. If they thought you were terrible landlords, they wouldn’t have stayed. Get screenshots of everything and consult an attorney. If nothing else get a cease and desist letter to them.
I’d also get the lawyer to get a legal letter to them, with a month notice to vacate. The sooner you can get the legal eviction started the better. Chances are they aren’t going to leave on their own.
TF kinda entitled nonsense is going on here where people are calling you a villain? All renters know they aren't paying for their own mortgage and they have no entitlement to your property whatsoever. They're on a month-to-month lease. You're telling them that lease is ending.
They should have saved up money for this. 60 days is a great deal of notice for people who told you years ago that they wanted to buy a house and didn't want to resign the lease. This bullsh*t about 'getting a house you didn't pay for' is just a load of bullsh*t.
You did. Your credit is on that house. You did the down payment (which is what allows the mortgage to be so low) and the home loan is in your name. NTA. These comments are so entitled.
NTA, you literally gave them 22 years to prepare, how could you be the AH??? Everyone here saying Y-T-A is insane. You have been more than fair, even keeping them at a low rent, how could they say you are TA?
I hate to say it, but they are probably going to be pretty destructive over the next few months and leave the place in less than ideal condition. Be careful.
Did I miss the part where you forced them to have six kids? Or the part where you made them have a family they could not support? Wait, you mean you aren't in charge of either their reproductive decisions or their financial ones? Go figure.