Understanding the Eviction Process as a New Landlord

Eviction is not something new property owners want to think about, but understanding the process will be beneficial in the long run, if circumstances arise. 

As with most legal processes, there are some terms that this post is going to define, to make understanding the steps towards evicting problem tenants much easier. 

Eviction Process Vocab (via Google Definitions & Cambridge Dictionary) 

1. Notice to Pay: This is the first document given to tenants who have not paid their rent on time. It simply states that the tenants must pay their past due rent, or there will be consequences. 
2. Notice to Comply: A notice to comply is similar to the notice to pay. It’s a document stating that the tenants must adhere to the terms of their lease by fixing the issue that is in violation. Basically, property owners are either serving out-of-line tenants with a Notice to Pay or a Notice to Comply when eviction is on the table. 
3. Writ of Execution: Cambridge Dictionary defines this as “a court order that gives an official the right to do something such as take a person’s property in order to pay someone the money that person owes them.” This is, essentially, what happens after the judge has ruled in favor of the property owner, and the court officially rules that the tenant must pay the property owner, with the enforcement of the US Marshals. 
4. Notice to Quit: This one is similar to the writ of execution, but a little less aggressive. This one applies more to those tenants who are no longer bound to a lease. If a tenant has no lease and is only paying month-to-month rent, and a property owner decides they need to remove a tenant for any reason, a Notice to Quit can be issued, asking the tenants to move out in a timely fashion per the landlord’s request (not the court’s request).
5. Answer: In this case, an answer is a written submission from the tenant, that the court will read, stating why the tenant believes they should not be evicted. This document is optional on the part of the tenant. 
6. To Serve a Summons: This is an official demand to appear in court. This is the one that is given to the tenant by a professional, like a sheriff. 
7. Writ of Restitution: Lawhelp.org defines this as “a document that authorizes the US Marshal’s Service to schedule an eviction of a tenant.” 
8. Retaliation Eviction: Arguably the most important definition we’re providing here, a retaliation eviction is something a property owner can NOT do. This is when a property owner tries to evict tenants for complaining about the rented property -  this could mean complaining directly to the landlord or even to an authority about the property. It’s crucial for property owners to understand what is within their rights to evict tenants for. To be very clear: tenants complaining or participating in legal activities that the property owner doesn’t agree with - either politically or morally - are not legal reasons to evict tenants (Us Legal). 

The Basic Steps to Eviction

1. Determining that the tenant has, in fact, broken the terms of their lease. Obviously, if they haven’t paid their rent on time, and there was no grace-period agreed to in the lease, then this is the time to leave the tenant a notice to pay. If the tenant has broken the lease in a non-monetary way, for example, they broke a window of the rental property. Then it would be appropriate to serve them a notice to comply - basically saying to fix the window within three to seven days or you’ll be evicted. 
2. If the tenants comply and/or pay - the eviction process stops there. If they don’t, then we move to the next step, which is when the property owner would formally file a complaint in a court. In Mobile, the fee for filing that complaint is $256 (iPropertyManagement). This is where things can start to get expensive and waiting times for court decisions to be made can be lengthy. 
3. The court will give the tenant a chance to file an answer. If no answer is submitted from the tenant, or if the court denies the answer, then the hearing will move forward. 
4. Then the actual hearing will take place and the judge will make a decision.
5. If the judge rules in favor of the property owner, the writ of execution can be served to the tenant, asking them to move out within seven days. Otherwise, the US Marshals can remove tenants who refuse to move out voluntarily. 
6. The final step is when the property is officially returned to the landlord’s ownership. 

As you can see, the process of evicting a tenant from a rental property is extensive. The waiting times between each one of the above steps varies from a few days to a few months, and is unique to each situation that’s filed in the courts. No eviction process will be exactly the same every time. 

We encourage all property owners, but especially new landlords, to consider having rental properties run by a professional property management company. 

Revitalize Realty makes it easy to fill your rental properties with reliable, long-term tenants. Our property managers handle all of the appropriate screening of applicants to ensure the best possible candidates for each rental property. The screening process is rigorous and detailed in order to avoid the even more taxing process of evicting tenants that can’t afford their rent, or who damage property. 

But should the need for an eviction arise, our property managers are here to help. We take care of the entire eviction process for you, all the paperwork, sorting out hearings, serving documents, etc. Luckily for property owners, the tenants that we choose for your properties have a stellar track record because of our screening process. Evictions are not common for rental properties that we screen applicants for. 

All in all, the eviction process is a dark and scary place, necessary to be aware of, but definitely avoidable if the correct steps are taken beforehand. If you’d like more information on our screening process, please check out this link to one of our previous posts and download our Red Flag Checklist for Landlords!