Roommate Troubles (very long, but in digestible pieces!)

[JordanIB]

Super summary: Roommate signed agreement to rent my apartment for a year. He gave notice he was leaving 5 months early, on Feb 28th. I agreed. He recently asked to stay until March 3; I refused. He might try to stay until March 3rd. He's been a dick and I want him out by 11:59 PM next Tuesday, the 28th. What's my line?

Sorry for the length…I’ll try to cut out any extraneous information.

My friend and I have a 3 BR apartment for which we find a 3rd roommate off CL. Us 2 are on the lease; 3rd roommate (we’ll call him Joe) is not on the lease. Joe signed a separate “sublease” agreement with us; the landlord knows nothing of it.

The original agreement says he will rent for a year, ending July 31, 2006, and requires written agreement from all parties to change it.

We had a falling out around New Year’s. Joe wanted out, and wrote an email “serving as written notice that his last day living in the apartment is February 28, 2006” and will be moving out then.

Last week, Joe asks me if he can stay until March 3. I say I don’t know; it depends on the the new roommate's schedule. I tell Joe I have no problem with him staying if it’s possible, and I’ll let him know as soon as I know.

Wednesday night I want to show the apartment/room to someone. Since the fallout, Joe put a locking knob on his door, so it is locked at all times when he is not home. He doesn’t get home until midnight on Wed, so I cannot show the apartment.

I send an email to Joe and leave a note on the door the next morning asking him to leave his door unlocked so I may show the room.

He IM’s me later that day (we are both at work) saying “We need to talk…”

Long story short: Joe uses his locked room as a bargaining chip, saying if I let him stay until March 3 I can show the apartment, but if I say no to his “deal” then he will keep his door locked until leaving on the 28th. He becomes quite demonstrative and contentious over this, acting very tough that he now has the “upper hand.”

I discuss with my roommate and we decide to tell Joe basically to [censored] off. I respond to his “written notice” of leaving February 28th saying “As a reminder, your written notice and my acceptance of that notice effectively change the terms of our original agreement. You are expected to vacate the apartment, return your key to me, and be moved out by 11:59 PM on Feb. 28th”. (I do this in an email, so that it is in writing).

I think he will try to basically just stay in the apartment until he is ready to leave on the 3rd. Therefore, I IM’d him this morning reiterating my email of last night, and said that his presence in the apartment and in the building on March 1 or beyond will be considered trespassing. My thought here is that if he just stays next week, my only possible recourse is calling the police and telling them there is a trespasser in my apartment.

I will be buying a new lock over the weekend and will install it at the first moment he leaves the apartment beginning March 1.

Your thoughts on my course of action so far? I don’t forsee him staying past the 3rd, but what if any recourse do I have if he tries to say March 1-3?

Any other advice or details needed?

Thanks! (NSFW pics to come later today…I’m at work now).