Nonpayment of rent is the number one cause of eviction in the United States. It can be a lengthy and drawn-out process taking a couple of weeks to several months to complete, pending no complications. Following these steps will help you expedite the eviction process for nonpayment of rent.
7 Steps to Evicting a Tenant for Nonpayment of Rent
Here are the steps to follow to evict a tenant for nonpayment of rent.
- Understand Eviction Laws
- Talk to Your Tenant
- Write and Serve the Eviction Notice
- File the Eviction Action
- Attend the Hearing
- Tenant Removal
- Find a New Tenant
1. Understand Eviction Laws
Each state has its own eviction laws that you’ll have to be aware of to legally evict a tenant.
| State | Grace period for Late Payment | Required Eviction notice | Time to Move Out After Ruling |
| Alabama | 5 days (mobile homes only) | 7 days | 7 days |
| Alaska | No statute | 7 days | No statute |
| Arizona | No statute | 5 days | 12 hours to 5 days |
| Arkansas | No statute | 3 or 10 days | 24 hours |
| California | No statute | 3 days | 5 days |
| Colorado | 7 days | 10 days | Writ cannot be issued for 48 hours |
| Connecticut |
|
3 days | Writ cannot be issued for 5 days + 24 hours |
| Delaware | 5 days (8 days if rent can’t be paid in person within the same county as the residence) | 5 days | Writ cannot be issued for 10 days + 24 hours |
| Florida | No statute | 3 days | 24 hours |
| Georgia | No statute | Not specified | Writ cannot be issued for 7 days |
| Hawaii | No statute | 5 days | No statute |
| Idaho | No statute | 3 days | Must move immediately or 5 days |
| Illinois | No statute | 5 days | 7- 14 days |
| Indiana | No statute | 10 days | 48 or 72 hours |
| Iowa | No statute | 3 days | 3 days |
| Kansas | No statute | 3 days | Up to 14 days |
| Kentucky | No statute | 7 days | 7 days |
| Louisiana | No statute | 5 or 20 days | 24 hours |
| Maine | 15 days | 7 days if no written lease | Writ cannot be issued for 7 days + 48 hours |
| Maryland | No statute | No written notice required | Up to 60 days + writ cannot be issued for 4 days |
| Massachusetts | 30 days | 14 days | Writ cannot be issued for 10 days + 48 hours |
| Michigan | No statute | 7 days | Writ cannot be issued for 10 days |
| Minnesota | No statute | No written notice required | 24 hours |
| Mississippi | No statute | 3 days | No statute for nonpayment |
| Missouri | No statute | Not specified | Writ cannot be issued for 5 days + 24 hours – 5 additional days |
| Montana | No statute | 3 days | No statute |
| Nebraska | No statute | 7 days | 10 days |
| Nevada |
|
7 days | Writ cannot be issued for 5 business days + 24 – 36 hours |
| New Hampshire | No statute | 7 days | Writ cannot be issued for 5 – 7 days |
| New Jersey | 5 business days for certain senior tenants only | No written notice required | Writ cannot be issued for 3 business days + 3 – 7 additional days |
| New Mexico | No statute | 3 days | 3 – 7 days |
| New York | 5 days | 14 days | 10 or 14 days |
| North Carolina | 5 days | 10 days | Writ cannot be issued for 10 days + move out immediately after writ receipt or up to 5 additional days |
| North Dakota | No statute | 3 days | No statute |
| Ohio | No statute | 3 days | Up to 10 days |
| Oklahoma | No statute | 5 or 10 days | 48 hours |
| Oregon | 4 days | 72 or 144 hours | Writ cannot be issued for 4 days |
| Pennsylvania | No statute | 10 days | Writ cannot be issued for 5 days + 10 additional days |
| Rhode Island | No statute | 5 days | Writ cannot be issued for 6 days |
| South Carolina | No statute | 5 days | 24 hours |
| South Dakota | No statute | 3 days | No statute |
| Tennessee | 5 days (if 6th day is a Sunday or holiday, due date is the next business day) | 7 or 14 days | Writ cannot be issued for 10 days |
| Texas | 2 days | 3 days | Writ cannot be issued for 6 days + 24 hours |
| Utah | No statute | 3 days | Must move immediately or 3 days |
| Vermont | No statute | 14 days | 5 or 14 days |
| Virginia | 5 days if there is no written lease agreement | 5 days | Writ cannot be issued for 10 days + 72 hours |
| Washington | 5 days | 14 days | 3 – 5 days |
| West Virginia | No statute | No written notice required | No statute |
| Wisconsin | No statute | 5, 14 or 30 days | Up to 10 days |
| Wyoming | No statute | 3 days | Up to 2 days |
2. Talk to Your Tenant
Once you realize the tenant isn’t paying rent or is making late or only partial payments, start by talking with your tenant before filing an eviction case, especially if the tenant’s never had issues paying rent before.
The cost of eviction is estimated between $3,500 – $10,000 so talking with your tenant may help avoid the eviction process. There are a few ways you may be able to come to an agreement.
Nonpayment Solutions
If a normally reliable tenant is suddenly late on their rent, ask why they’ve missed the payment. Maybe the primary earner lost their job, is on leave due to health issues, or has had to care for a sick family member and been unable to work.
A few options to avoid evicting an otherwise good tenant could include:
- Setting up a temporary payment plan
- Temporarily reducing rent
- Accepting a partial payment for the current period
- Pushing back the rent due date by a few days or a week
- Offer cash for keys
Be sure that any agreement you reach with your tenant is in writing, and be clear about compliance deadlines. This way, the tenant can’t make false claims about what any agreement may or may not have said in court if you end up filing an eviction case after all.
3. Write and Serve the Eviction Notice
An eviction notice is a legal document issued by the landlord that outlines the violation.
Pay rent or quit notices are specifically used when a tenant owes you rent.
Some states require a grace period to allow the tenant an opportunity to pay the overdue rent.
This is the first formal step in the process of legally evicting a tenant. Be sure to check local laws to ensure you’re following all requirements, including:
- Contents of the eviction notice
- The process for delivering the notice
Contents of the Eviction Notice
For nonpayment of rent, landlords in most states can serve a pay or quit notice. This notice should include:
- A statement that explains that rent is past due
- A specific period of time to pay the past due rent (if curable) including any late fees (if applicable)
- Instructions to vacate the premises should the rent not be paid in full by the given date
- Explanation of what happens next if the tenant does not comply
Delivering the Eviction Notice
If the tenant still isn’t able to pay the rent in full, even after trying to work out a solution, then the next step is to deliver a written eviction notice to your tenant—but only if this is required in your state. You’ll need to know:
- How much written notice (if any) is required in your state
- The correct way to give the eviction notice to your tenant
If the landlord doesn’t correctly serve the eviction notice on the tenant, the eviction proceeding could be stopped, so be sure you check your state and local requirements.
Common delivery methods allowed include:
- Mailing via regular mail
- Mailing via certified/registered mail
- Personal service on tenant or member of tenant’s household
- Personal service on someone at tenant’s workplace
- Service by process server or sheriff
- Posting the notice in a conspicuous location on the rental premises (usually after other methods have failed)
- Publishing the eviction notice in a local newspaper (usually after other methods have failed)
Keep a record of the ways you have attempted to serve the tenant as it may come in handy during court proceedings as most states expect landlords to make multiple attempts to serve the tenant
4. File the Eviction Action
If the tenant is still occupying the unit after the compliance deadline without resolving the payment issue, the landlord should file an eviction action with the court.
Keep in mind that you must follow the laws of your state and local area. Many states offer grace periods while others do not require a written notice before filing the eviction action. This part of the process can take between 3 – 30 days or longer, so be prepared to cover your bills in the meantime.
You may also be required to serve a copy of the eviction complaint to the tenant and a summons to attend the hearing.
5. Attend the Hearing
Never assume that the judicial officer will automatically rule in your favor. Landlords need to attend the hearing in person or the court could issue a default judgment in favor of the tenant or dismiss the case.
The hearing is your opportunity to present your evidence and show you have tried to come to a solution with the tenant. Be sure to include:
- Payment logs/spreadsheets
- Witnesses
- Bank statements
- The written rental agreement
- Any written temporary agreements
- Past-due notices sent to the tenant
- Written notes from prior discussions about late rent
The judicial officer will also ask the tenant (if they’ve appeared at the hearing) to share any evidence the tenant may have for why they shouldn’t be evicted.
If the judge rules in favor of the landlord, the tenant will be ordered to move out of the rental unit. In some states, the landlord is required to request the orders, while in other states it is issued automatically.
In a few states, tenants are allowed to pay the full amount of past-due rent even after the eviction hearing has been held and still avoid being evicted. Be sure you understand what the law says in your state when it comes to the final deadline your tenants have for paying past-due rent.
6. Tenant Removal
The tenant removal process varies by state. In some states, the landlord receives the eviction order and can remove the tenant themselves. In other states, law enforcement officials receive a copy of the eviction order, and they’re responsible for removing the tenant and their belongings from the rental unit.
In some states, the court order (also called a writ), cannot be issued until after the deadline to file an appeal has passed, which gives tenants more time to move out of the rental unit even if they’re not filing an appeal.
In Connecticut, the writ cannot be issued until 5 days after the ruling in favor of the landlord. Once the writ is issued, the tenant has an additional 24 hours to move out, giving the tenant a total of 6 days to move out after the order was entered in favor of the landlord.
If the tenant fails to move out within their state’s deadline, then in nearly every state, law enforcement officials will return to the rental unit and forcibly remove (or evict) the tenant from the rental unit.
In some states, a judge can order immediate removal at the end of the trial. However, many states give the tenant between one to four weeks to move out.
7. Find a New Renter
When you begin to look for a new renter, you can benefit from setting up a good screening process to help you avoid another eviction or a nightmare tenant. A good tenant should have the ability to pay rent in full and on time, every time.
Rental History and Income Information
A good rental application will include questions about the prospective tenant’s credit/income and their employment history.
The application should also ask about the tenant’s prior rental history, including whether they’ve been evicted before. This can give the potential landlord insight into the tenant’s ability to abide by a lease/rental agreement and whether they’ve paid rent on time in the past.
Here are some good questions to ask on a rental application:
- Have you ever been evicted?
- Do you have a track record of missing payments or being late on rent?
- Have you ever broken a lease?
- Have you damaged a rental property before?
- Do you believe your previous landlords would rent to you again?
Also, ask for previous landlords’ contact information. Make it clear that you are going to verify their answers on this application, and that applicants with information that doesn’t line up will be removed from consideration for the rental.
Credit and Background Checks
A credit check will give you an idea of the tenant’s past payment history, and help you identify potential red flags when it comes to a tenant’s ability to pay rent.
Financial red flags for landlords typically include things like bankruptcies, financial judgments, accounts sent to collections, foreclosures, and repossessions.
It is required by federal law to receive written permission to run a credit and background check, so be sure to include a release form in the application.
Talking to Previous Landlords
Contact the tenant’s former or current landlord and ask about their experiences with the tenant.
This should give you an idea of whether they’ve paid rent on time to their current/former landlord or if they struggled to make timely rent payments.
Just be sure you stick to the tenant’s payment history and other questions directly related to the screening process so you don’t accidentally end up being discriminatory toward the tenant.
Tips for Avoiding Eviction Errors
There are a few things you may have done (intentionally or not) that could negatively impact a nonpayment of rent eviction.
Habitually Accepting Late Rent Payments
If the tenant can show that the landlord had a habit of accepting late rent payments on a regular basis, the court could decide that even though the rent was late, the landlord altered the rental agreement by habitually accepting late rent payments, and the tenant may not be required to move.
Moving Forward With An Illegal Eviction
You cannot evict a tenant if they comply with everything on the eviction notice within the deadline given in the notice. The eviction notice should clearly state what tenants must do, and landlords should not attempt to evict a tenant if they’ve met the expectations set forth in the notice.
Not Fulfilling Landlord Obligations
In several states, tenants may be allowed to stop paying rent, or to make only partial rent payments, if the landlord has failed to provide them with a safe and sanitary place to live.
This could take several forms, such as failing to make necessary repairs to the rental unit to make it livable, or failing to provide agreed-upon utility services as set forth in the lease/rental agreement.
Accepting A Partial Rent Payment
In some states, if the landlord accepts even a partial rent payment from the tenant for the rental period (week/month/quarter), the court may allow the tenant to remain in the rental unit.
It may be tempting to accept anything from a tenant who hasn’t been consistently paying rent, but it could seem like you’ve agreed to accept a different rent amount than what’s in the written lease/rental agreement.
Committing a Self-Help Eviction
Landlords cannot remove a tenant without going through the eviction process as outlined by their state. Removing a tenant or their belongings from a rental is illegal. You also cannot refuse to make the space habitable to get them to move.
Additional self-help eviction actions include:
- Changing the locks
- Removing the tenants’ possessions when they aren’t home
- Turning off utilities
- Refusing repairs
- Preventing the tenant from physically entering the space
- Threatening the tenant
