California Eviction Process

Timeline. Evicting a tenant in California can take about 5-8 weeks (or more) depending on the reason for the eviction, and how (or how quickly) the tenant was served the summons and complaint. If tenants request a stay of execution, the process can take longer (read more).

Below are the individual steps of the eviction process in California.

Step 1: Notice is Posted

Landlords in California can begin the eviction process for several reasons, including:

1. Nonpayment of Rent – Once rent is past due, the tenant must be given the option to pay rent in order to avoid eviction.
2. Violation of Lease Terms / Rental Agreement – If a tenant violates a provision of a written lease/rental agreement, the landlord must give the tenant the opportunity to correct the issue (if curable) before moving forward with the eviction process.
3. No Lease / End of Lease Term (Tenant at Will) – Landlords in rent-controlled cities cannot evict tenants once the rental period/term of the lease has ended without some other cause; in all other areas, notice is only required for month-to-month tenancies.
4. Foreclosure of Rental Property – If the rental property is being foreclosed upon, and the tenancy will not be continued, landlords are required to give written notice prior to evicting the tenant.
5. Illegal Activity – If a tenant or any other occupant of the rental unit is engaged in illegal activity, notice must be served on the tenant before the landlord can evict the tenant.

Each possible ground for eviction has its own rules for how the process starts.

Eviction Process for Nonpayment of Rent

A landlord is allowed to evict a tenant for failing to pay rent on time.

According to California law, rent is late the day after it’s due. Any grace periods are addressed in the lease/rental agreement.

Once rent is past due, the landlord must provide a 3-Day Notice to Pay if the landlord wants to file an eviction action with the court. This notice gives the tenant the option to pay the past due amount in full within 3 days in order to avoid eviction.

However, the eviction notice must not include any amount owed other than rent (like late fees, interest, etc.).

If the tenant does not pay the rent due by the end of the notice period and remains on the property, the landlord may proceed with the eviction process.

Eviction Process for Violation of Lease Terms / Rental Agreement

A tenant can be evicted in California if they do not uphold their responsibilities under the terms of a written lease/rental agreement.

California landlords must provide tenants with a 3-Day Notice to Comply giving the tenant 3 days to correct the issue in order to avoid eviction.

Typical lease violations under this category could include things like damaging the rental property, having too many people residing in the rental unit, and having a pet when there’s a no-pet policy.

Some violations may not be curable, such as “waste” (causing property damage) or non-criminal nuisances.

Note that illegal activity is not included in this category.

If the tenant remains on the property after the notice period, the landlord may proceed with the eviction process.

Eviction Process for No Lease / End of Lease

In the state of California, landlords in rent-controlled cities are not allowed to terminate a tenancy without cause, and cannot evict tenants simply because the rental period has ended.

In all other areas, if tenants “hold over,” or stay in the rental unit after the rental term has expired, then the landlord may pursue an eviction action.

Notice is needed prior to eviction except for:

• Expired fixed-term leases
• Situations where the rental unit is part of a job package, and the tenant loses the job or quits

For all month-to-month tenants, landlords are required to give a lease termination notice before evicting them. In California, landlords must either give 30 or 60 days’ notice depending on how long the month-to-month tenant has lived in the rental unit.

• Less than one year – If a month-to-month tenant has lived in the rental unit for less than one year, a landlord must provide the tenant with a 30-Day Notice to Quit.
• One year or more – If a month-to-month tenant has lived in the rental unit for a year or more, the landlord must provide the tenant with a 60-Day Notice to Quit.

Where no notice is needed, landlords may file an eviction action directly with the court without giving tenants written notice beforehand.

For month-to-month tenancies, if the tenant remains on the property after the notice period expires, the landlord may proceed with the eviction process.

Eviction Process for Foreclosure of Rental Property

A tenant can be evicted in California if the rental property is being foreclosed upon, and the tenancy will not be continued.

For rental property foreclosures, the landlord is required to give tenants 90 days’ written notice prior to beginning an eviction action.

Tenants being evicted due to sale or foreclosure must move out, and do not have the option to “cure” an issue in order to stay.

If the tenant remains on the property after the notice period expires, the landlord may proceed with the eviction process.

Eviction Process for Illegal Activity

Tenants of a rental unit who are involved in illegal activity must be given 3 days’ notice before the landlord can proceed with an eviction action.

Illegal activity includes criminal threats/activity, unlawful business activity (such as prostitution, using the rental unit as a business if that’s prohibited in the lease, etc.), and criminal nuisances such as:

• Illegal firearm activity
• Illegal drug activity
• Dogfighting/cockfighting

If the tenant remains on the property after the notice period expires, the landlord may proceed with the eviction process.

Step 2: Petition is Filed and Served

As the next step in the eviction process, California landlords must file a complaint in the appropriate court. In California, this can cost between $385 and $435 in filing fees and an additional $40 to issue a writ of execution.

The summons and eviction complaint can be served on the tenant by anyone who is at least 18 and not part of the case. The landlord must have the tenant served within60 days of filing the complaint, or the case could be dismissed by the court.

The summons and complaint may be served by one of the following methods:

1. Giving a copy of the summons and complaint to the tenant in person
2. Leaving a copy of the summons and complaint with a competent member of the household or a competent co-worker if the tenant is not available
3. Posting a copy of the summons and complaint in a conspicuous place on the rental unit

If the summons and complaint are left with someone other than the tenant, or posted on the rental property, then a copy must also be mailed to the tenant in order for service to be considered “complete.”

Once the summons and complaint have been served, the tenant has a chance to respond to the complaint.

Step 3: Answer is Filed

In California, tenants are not required to file a formal, written answer to an eviction complaint; however, a landlord is required to wait out the legally required “answer period” before moving forward with the eviction process.

If the tenant doesn’t respond, the court could issue a default judgment in favor of the landlord.

Tenants who were served with the summons and complaint in person have five business days to respond to the complaint prior to a hearing.

For all other types of service, the tenant has five days plus the additional 10 days required for service by mail to be considered “complete,” for a total of 15 days to respond.

After the appropriate time period has expired, the landlord then has three options:

1. If the tenant failed to respond, the landlord can ask for a default judgment without having to go to a hearing, which could still take a few days to a few weeks, depending on how busy the judicial officer’s schedule is.
2. If the tenant failed to respond, the landlord can get an immediate order of possession from the clerk of court’s office. (This can only be done if the landlord is not asking for back rent/other monies owed.)
3. If the tenant did respond, the landlord must file a request for a hearing, asking the court to set a hearing date for the eviction.

Both the default judgment and the order of possession skip the hearing, meaning the tenant will not have the opportunity to present their case for why they should be allowed to remain in the rental unit.

If the tenant does file a response, the eviction process continues with a hearing.

Step 4: Court Hearing and Judgment

Once the landlord files a request for hearing, the eviction hearing will be scheduled within 20 days of the date the request was filed.

Either the landlord or tenant could request an extension, but whether or not it’s granted (and for how long) is up the judicial officer.

If the judge rules in favor of the landlord, a writ of execution will be issued and the eviction process will proceed.

In California, filing an appeal will not stop the eviction. The only way a tenant can stop an eviction is to request a stay of execution after receiving the writ of execution in step 4 below.

Step 5: Writ of Execution Is Issued

The Writ of Execution is the tenant’s final notice to leave the rental unit, and gives them the opportunity to remove their belongings before the sheriff returns to the property to forcibly remove the tenant.

If the court has ruled in the landlord’s favor, the landlord will ask the court to issue a writ of execution. This can be done at the hearing.

Step 6: Possession of Property is Returned

Tenants have 5 days to move out once they have been served with a copy of the writ of execution. If a tenant does not move out within that period, the sheriff will return and forcibly remove them.

It’s possible for tenants to request a stay of execution, which would delay the eviction for another 40 days. If granted by the court, this will only put off the eviction, not prevent it, and the tenant will still need to move out after the 40 days is up.

California Eviction Process Timeline

Below is a summary of the aspects outside of the landlord’s control that dictate the amount of time it takes to evict a tenant in California. With that being said, these estimates can vary greatly, and some time periods may not include weekends or legal holidays.

1. Initial Notice Period – between 3 and 90 days, depending on the reason for eviction.
2. Issuance/Service of Summons and Petition – within 60 days of filing the complaint.
3. Answer is Filed – 5-15 days, depending on how the tenant was served with the summons and complaint.
4. Court Hearing and Ruling on the Eviction – ~20 days after the request for hearing is filed.
5. Issuance of Writ of Execution – A few hours to a few days.
6. Return of Possession – 5 days, unless a 40-day stay is granted.

Flowchart of California Eviction Process

For additional questions about the eviction process in California, please refer to the official state legislation, California Civil Code §§1940-1954 and 3479-3486.5 and the California Code of Civil Procedure, §§415.10,715, and 1159-1179a,for more information.