Can I Evict My Unmarried Partner From My Home?
Yes, you can “try” and evict an unmarried partner from your home. If your partner will not leave voluntarily, you will typically need to follow the city or county (depending where the home is) rules for eviction. NRS 118 contains the general rules regarding a landlord and a tenant. NRS 40 contains the procedures for being granted an eviction.
Your eviction request might NOT be successful if your partner claims a financial interest in the home. This interest is called “Community Property by Analogy”. If your unmarried partner raises this issue at the eviction court, the judge will likely need to dismiss the eviction because your partner is claiming a financial interest in the home.
If you’re married, the process for evicting a spouse MUST be part of a divorce action. Read Can I Evict My Spouse in Nevada.
What Is “Community Property by Analogy”?
You have three situations where couples might have an interest in a home.
1) Married couples, with or without both names on the deed, create an ownership interest in a home purchased during the marriage through community property laws.
2) Unmarried couples, with both names on a deed, create an ownership interest through laws regarding deeds and real property ownership.
3) Unmarried couples, without both names on a deed, create an ownership interest through laws of equity, which means fairness.
We are discussing the third situation, where your partner’s name is not in the deed or title. Your partner can still claim an interest under the community property by analogy. This is the legal doctrine Nevada courts use to divide property between unmarried couples who pooled their finances and built a life together as though married.
The courts believe when unmarried couples hold themselves out like a married couple would, then property acquired during this relationship could be community property. This mainly applies to a home or a business because there must be a showing that the couple worked together to acquire and maintain this asset.
Nevada recognized this doctrine in the case of Hay v. Hay, and applied it again in Western States Constr. v. Michoff, 108 Nev. 931 (1992). The Nevada Supreme Court later confirmed that Las Vegas Family Courts may hear these disputes, even between unmarried, childless partners in the case of Landreth v. Malik. However, assignment to family court isn’t mandatory.
Since there’s no marriage to dissolve, these disputes aren’t automatically routed to family court the way a divorce is. Whether a civil property or partition action is the right tool instead depends heavily on the specific facts like title, financial contributions, are there children, and how long the relationship lasted all matter. If there are children in the relationship, this case is most likely headed to family court.
The analysis and final decision of the judge depends on the couple’s own conduct and implied agreement to share what they built together. Did they act like a married couple when the home was purchased? Did they both choose the realtor, the home, the wall paint, the backyard landscaping? Did they raise children in the home?
If the court decides a marital like relationship exists then the home will be divided under community property laws. If this is your case, read Who Gets the House in a Las Vegas Divorce.
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