I allowed a friend to share in my apartment. There is no lease agreement. Must serve eviction to remove him?

Question

I allowed a friend to share in my apartment. There is no lease agreement. Must serve eviction to remove him?

Answer

Even where there is no written lease, if an individual has resided at the property for at least 30 days, then in order to remove them from the property, Eviction proceedings must be commenced in the Magisterial District Court for the area in which the property is located. The individual who institutes these proceedings may not engage in "self help" such as tossing the "tenant's property in the street, change the door locks, turn the utilities off, etc., or take any other steps which would prevent the individual from entering the property.