How to Evict a Roommate in Ohio (and Other Household Situations)
What Ohio law says about roommates who are not on the lease, guests who won't leave, family members, renting a room in your own home, and tenancies at will — each with the statute or official source.
Short answer: Under Ohio's landlord-tenant law, a tenant is a person entitled under a rental agreement to use and occupy residential premises to the exclusion of others, and a rental agreement can be written or oral. An occupant not on the written lease can be a tenant if they have their own oral or written agreement with the landlord. 'Landlord' includes a sublessor, so a tenant who sublets to a roommate becomes that roommate's landlord. Ohio Rev. Code § 5321.01(A), (B), (D)
| Roommate not on the lease | Under Ohio's landlord-tenant law, a tenant is a person entitled under a rental agreement to use and occupy residential premises to the exclusion of others, and a rental agreement can be written or oral. An occupant not on the written lease can be a tenant if they have their own oral or written agreement with the landlord. 'Landlord' includes a sublessor, so a tenant who sublets to a roommate becomes that roommate's landlord. |
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| Removing a roommate or subtenant | No roommate-specific statute. A sublessor counts as a landlord, so a tenant who sublets ends a month-to-month subtenancy with notice at least 30 days before the periodic rental date (7 days for week-to-week). If the roommate holds over, removal is through a forcible entry and detainer (eviction) case in court, which must be preceded by a written three-day notice to leave the premises. Termination notice: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-5321.17. Eviction grounds: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-1923.02. |
| Guests who won't leave | No statute sets when a guest becomes a tenant; tenant status depends on a written or oral rental agreement. A person occupying land or buildings without color of title, against whom the owner has the right of possession, can be removed through a forcible entry and detainer case after a three-day notice to leave. |
| Renting a room in your own home (lodgers) | No separate lodger statute. Ohio's landlord-tenant chapter excludes hotels, motels, tourist homes and similar transient lodging, but lists no exclusion for renting a room in the owner's home, so a roomer with a rental agreement is generally a tenant. Source: Ohio Rev. Code § 5321.01(C) |
| Tenancy at will | Ohio's statutes do not separately define tenancy at will. Month-to-month tenancies end on notice at least 30 days before the periodic rental date, and week-to-week tenancies on at least 7 days' notice. A tenant under an oral tenancy who falls behind on rent can be removed by forcible entry and detainer after the landlord ends the tenancy by notice. |
| Hotel and extended-stay guests | Tourist homes, hotels, motels, RV parks, recreation camps and similar facilities are excluded from Ohio's landlord-tenant chapter where circumstances indicate a transient occupancy. No statute sets a specific number of days; whether a long-term hotel stay is non-transient depends on the circumstances. Certain nonprofit single-room-occupancy facilities are excluded for stays under 60 days (§ 5321.01(C)(9)). Source: Ohio Rev. Code § 5321.01(C)(3) |
Never remove someone by changing the locks or taking their belongings: if the person has become a tenant, only a court can order them out. If there is violence or a threat, call 911 and ask about a protective order.
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Ohio eviction laws · Free legal help in Ohio · Roommate rules in other states
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.