How to Evict a Roommate in Tennessee (and Other Household Situations)
What Tennessee 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: In counties covered by Tennessee's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, a tenant is a person entitled under a rental agreement (written or oral) to occupy a dwelling unit to the exclusion of others. A roommate who is not on the written lease is a tenant only if they have their own agreement with the landlord. Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 66-28-102, 66-28-104
| Roommate not on the lease | In counties covered by Tennessee's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, a tenant is a person entitled under a rental agreement (written or oral) to occupy a dwelling unit to the exclusion of others. A roommate who is not on the written lease is a tenant only if they have their own agreement with the landlord. Tennessee's official code is published by LexisNexis; this cite links to a public mirror. The URLTA applies only in counties with a population of more than 75,000 under the 2010 federal census (§ 66-28-102). |
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| Removing a roommate or subtenant | No roommate-specific statute. Tennessee's unlawful detainer statute covers a person who got possession by contract as a tenant, assignee, or subtenant of a tenant (or by collusion with a tenant) and who willfully holds over. In URLTA counties, a month-to-month tenancy ends with written notice at least 30 days before the periodic rental date in the notice (10 days for week-to-week), and the holdover is then removed through a court detainer case. Public mirror of the official LexisNexis-published code. Notice rule: https://codes.findlaw.com/tn/title-66-property/tn-code-sect-66-28-512/. |
| Hotel and extended-stay guests | In URLTA counties, transient occupancy in a hotel or motel that is subject to city, state, or room occupancy taxes is excluded from the landlord-tenant act (unless the arrangement was created to avoid it). No statute sets a specific number of days. Public mirror of the official LexisNexis-published code. Source: Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-28-102 |
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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Tennessee eviction laws · Free legal help in Tennessee · 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.