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Timeline. Evicting a tenant in Nebraska can take around one to two months, depending on the reason for the eviction. If tenants file an appeal, the process can take longer (read more).
Introduction. Landlords and tenants in Nebraska must follow the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (URLTA). Below are the individual steps of the eviction process in Nebraska.
Step 1: Notice is Posted
Landlords in Nebraska can begin the eviction process for several reasons, including:
- Nonpayment of Rent – Once rent is past due, notice must be served giving the tenant the option to pay rent in order to avoid eviction.
- Violation of Lease Terms / Rental Agreement – If a tenant violates a provision of a written lease/rental agreement, the landlord is required to give the tenant the opportunity to correct the issue before moving forward with the eviction process.
- No Lease / End of Lease Term (Tenant at Will) – If there is no lease or the term of the lease has ended, the landlord does not need any additional reason to end the tenancy as long as proper notice is given.
- Illegal Activity If a tenant is engaged in illegal activity, they must receive written notice prior to an eviction hearing.
- Retaliatory Evictions. It is illegal for a landlord to evict a tenant for complaining to the landlord or to the appropriate local or government agency regarding the property. It is also illegal for a landlord to evict a tenant for joining, supporting, or organizing a tenant organization or union.
- Evicting a Squatter. If the individual occupying the property did not have the permission of the landlord when initially moving in, does not have a lease (or verbal agreement) and has no history of paying rent, then a landlord/tenant relationship may not be established. As a result, the normal eviction process may not be applicable (read more).
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 Nebraska law, rent is considered late the day after it’s due; grace periods, if any, are addressed in the lease/rental agreement.
Once rent is past due, the landlord must provide tenants with a 7-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 seven days in order to avoid eviction.
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
Nebraska landlords are required to allow tenants to correct a lease violation in these instances, and must provide tenants with a 30-Day Notice to Comply giving the tenant 14 days to correct the issue.
If the issue is not corrected within the 14-day deadline, the tenant will need to move out at the end of the 30 days given in the Notice to Comply.
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.
Material health or safety violations are also included in this category and may include letting trash pile up inside the rental unit, providing a harbor for rodents or bugs, or even things like damaging the electrical wiring in the rental unit.
If the violation is corrected but the tenant commits the same violation within a six-month timeframe, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement with a 14-Day Notice.
Note that illegal activity is not included in this category.
If the tenant fails to correct the issue within the deadline/remains on the property after the notice period expires, the landlord may proceed with the eviction process.
Eviction Process for No Lease / End of Lease
In the state of Nebraska, if tenants “hold over,” or stay in the rental unit after the rental term has expired, then the landlord may be required to give tenants notice before evicting them. This can include tenants without a written lease and week-to-week and month-to-month tenants.
Often this type of eviction applies to tenants who are at the end of their lease and the landlord doesn’t want to renew.
The amount of time required in the notice depends on the type of tenancy.
- Week-to-Week – If rent is paid on a week-to-week basis, a landlord must provide the tenant with a 7-Day Notice to Quit.
- Month-to-Month – If rent is paid on a month-to-month basis, a landlord must provide the tenant with a 30-Day Notice to Quit.
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 who are involved in illegal activity must be given five days’ written notice before the landlord can proceed with an eviction action. Tenants in these instances do not have the opportunity to correct the issue to avoid eviction.
In Nebraska, illegal activity includes:
- Physical assault or threat of physical assault.
- Illegal use or threat to use a firearm or other weapon.
- Possession of a controlled substance.
- Illegal sale of a controlled substance.
- Any other activity that would harm the health and safety of people or property on the rental premises.
If someone other than the tenant was involved in the illegal activity, and the tenant can show that they either filed a restraining order against the party responsible or reported the activity to a law enforcement agency (or both), then the tenant may be able to avoid eviction.
If the tenant remains on the property after the notice period expires, the landlord may proceed with the eviction process.
Step 2: Complaint is Filed and Served
As the next step in the eviction process, Nebraska landlords must file a complaint in the appropriate court. In the state of Nebraska, this costs $85 in filing fees for eviction cases filed in District Court.
The summons and complaint may be served on the tenant by the sheriff or anyone else who isn’t a part of the case within three days of the date the summons was issued by the court, through one of the following methods:
- Giving a copy to the tenant in person;
- Leaving a copy at the tenant’s residence with someone of “suitable” age;
- Mailing a copy via certified mail;
- Using a designated delivery service to deliver a copy to the tenant;
- Posting a copy at the rental unit AND mailing a copy via first class mail. It is important to note that posting a copy may only be done if all other service methods fail. The landlord shall file an affidavit noting the diligent efforts to serve the summons.
Note that certified mail and delivery services may be done by the landlord or the landlord’s attorney and do not have to be done by the sheriff or a third-party process server.
Step 3: Court Hearing and Judgment
The eviction hearing must be held 10-14 days after the summons is issued.
In Nebraska, landlords and tenants do not have the right to a jury trial, and the eviction hearing will be held before a judicial officer only.
If the tenant fails to appear for the hearing, the judicial officer may issue a default ruling in favor of the landlord, meaning the tenant will have to move out.
If the judge rules in favor of the landlord, either through a default judgment or at an eviction hearing, a writ of restitution will be issued, and the eviction process will continue.
Step 4: Writ of Restitution Is Issued
The writ of restitution is the tenant’s final notice to leave the rental unit and gives them the opportunity to remove their belongings before a sheriff or constable returns to the property to forcibly remove them.
If the court has ruled in the landlord’s favor, the landlord will ask the court to issue a writ of restitution. Nebraska state law doesn’t specify how quickly this must be done after the judgment is issued in favor of the landlord.
Step 5: Possession of Property is Returned
A sheriff or constable must remove tenants from the rental unit within 10 days of the date the writ of restitution is issued by the court.
This could mean tenants have to move out the day the court hearing is held, depending on how quickly the landlord requests the writ of restitution. Tenants should be prepared to move out immediately, just in case.
Nebraska 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 Nebraska. These estimates can vary greatly, and some time periods may not include weekends or legal holidays.
- Initial Notice Period –Between 5 and 30 days, depending on the notice type and reason for eviction.
- Issuance/Service of Summons and Complaint – Three days.
- Court Hearing and Ruling on the Eviction – 10-14 days after the summons is issued by the court.
- Issuance of Writ of Restitution – A few hours to a few days.
- Return of Possession – Up to 10 days.
Additional Information
Tenant’s Personal Property Remaining on Premises. If the tenant is evicted from the rental unit and leaves behind personal property, the landlord shall give written notice describing all the property. The notice should also include the cost of storage, the location of where the property will be stored and the date of when the property must be claimed. The tenant must claim the personal property within seven days of the personal delivery of notice or if the notice is delivered by first-class mail, then within 14 days after the notice was mailed.
If the tenant fails to claim the property, and its value less than $2,000 the landlord may keep the property. If the personal property is over $2,000, the property shall be sold at a public sale and the funds must be used to cover the cost of storage or advertising. The remaining funds should be turned over to the State Treasurer where the tenant can claim the funds.
Flowchart of Nebraska Eviction Process
For additional questions about the eviction process in Nebraska, please refer to the official legislation, Nebraska Revised Statutes §76-1401 to 76-1449, and §25-505.1 to 25-506.1, for more information.
Sources
- 1 NE Rev Stat §76-1431 (2019)
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(2) If rent is unpaid when due and the tenant fails to pay rent within seven calendar days after written notice by the landlord of nonpayment and his or her intention to terminate the rental agreement if the rent is not paid within that period of time, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement.
- 2 NE Rev Stat §76-1431 (2019)
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(1) …if there is a noncompliance with section 76-1421 materially affecting health and safety or a material noncompliance by the tenant with the rental agreement or any separate agreement, the landlord may deliver a written notice to the tenant…that the rental agreement will terminate upon a date not less than thirty days after receipt of the notice if the breach is not remedied in fourteen days…
- 3 NE Rev Stat §76-1437 (2019)
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(1) The landlord or the tenant may terminate a week-to-week tenancy by a written notice given to the other at least seven days prior to the termination date specified in the notice. (2) The landlord or the tenant may terminate a month-to-month tenancy by a written notice given to the other at least thirty days prior to the periodic rental date specified in the notice.
- 4 NE Rev Stat §76-1431 (2019)
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(4) …after five days’ written notice of termination of the rental agreement and without the right of the tenant to cure the default, file suit …for recovery of possession …if the tenant… engages in any violent criminal activity on the premises, the illegal sale of any controlled substance on the premises, or any other activity that threatens the health or safety…
- 5 NE Rev Stat §76-1431 (2019)
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(4)(a) Physical assault or the threat of physical assault; (b) illegal use of a firearm or other weapon or the threat of illegal use of a firearm or other weapon; (c) possession of a controlled substance…or (d) any other activity or threatened activity which would otherwise threaten the health or safety of any person or involving threatened, imminent, or actual damage to the property.
- 6 NE Rev Stat §25-506.01 (2019)
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(1) Unless the plaintiff has elected certified mail service or designated delivery service, the summons shall be served by the sheriff… by a person authorized by section 25-507 or otherwise authorized by law, or by a person…not a party to the action specially appointed by the court for that purpose. (2) Certified mail service or designated delivery service shall be made by the plaintiff or plaintiff’s attorney.
- 7 NE Rev Stat §76-1442 (2019)
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The summons may be served and returned as in other cases or by any person, except that the summons shall be served within three days, excluding nonjudicial days, from the date of issuance and shall be returnable within five days, excluding nonjudicial days, from the date of issuance.
- 8 NE Rev Stat §25-505.01 (2019)
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(1)(a) … leaving the summons with the individual to be served; (b) … leaving the summons at the usual place of residence … with some person of suitable age and discretion residing therein; (c) Certified mail…(d) Designated delivery service …
- 9 NE Rev Stat §76-1442.01 (2019)
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…service of a summons…may be made by leaving a copy of the summons at the defendant’s last-known address and mailing a copy by first-class mail…The plaintiff shall file an affidavit…showing that an attempt was made to serve the summons in the manner provided in sections 25-505.01 to 25-516.01, the reasons why such service was unsuccessful…
- 10 NE Rev Stat §76-1446 (2019)
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Trial of the action for possession shall be held not less than ten nor more than fourteen days after the issuance of the summons. The action shall be tried by the court without a jury.
- 11 NE Rev Stat §76-1446 (2019)
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…the court shall declare the forfeiture of the rental agreement, and shall, at the request of the plaintiff or his or her attorney, issue a writ of restitution, directing the constable or sheriff to restore possession of the premises to the plaintiff on a specified date not more than ten days after issuance of the writ of restitution.