It can be a bit of a minefield when you are dealing with tenants. Before you get started with ‘how to evict a tenant’ task, it is better to do the required paperwork beforehand. No matter if you are a great landlord; you may still have to deal with bad tenants. So, it’s better to get the tenant referencing done seriously before you rent your property to someone. And, so that you don’t have to search for ‘how to evict a tenant’! Any situation can turn out to be bad for you and you have to deal with the bad tenancy.
It can be anytime when the tenants are not able to pay rent in a timely manner. Even a good relationship with your tenants sours when they are not able to pay rent. You might have a soft spot for them but you cannot let them stay in your property for free and especially when you have others who can pay rent timely.
It might seem harsh, but evicting a tenant is a part of the business of renting properties. If your tenant is unable to pay the rent, its best you remove them. From just asking them to leave or to go through a formal eviction process, ‘how to evict a tenant’ can vary from case to case.
The whole of the process, rules and regulations have been mentioned below so that you can do it right. Read on to know how to evict a tenant being within your limits:
Understanding the Eviction Laws
The evictions laws are different from state to state and country to country. It is advised to the landlords to consider them while they write up their lease document. They must clearly know ‘how to evict a tenant’ to ensure that they don’t land in a legal trouble. Better be familiar with the landlord and tenant acts so that you don’t find yourself in a troublesome situation. There are many steps that you cannot take without the court’s orders like removing your tenant’s stuff from your property, hiring bouncers to pull out tenants, changing locks or locking-out tenants, stopping basic amenities like electricity, gas, water, or anything such that bothers your tenants.
Valid Reason of Eviction
You cannot just think of evicting a tenant for fun. You must have a lawful reason to do so, so that court can favour you. The reasons like not paying rent, violating the document, damaging the property, breaking ordinances, safety hazards caused by the tenant, etc. are some of the valid reasons that you can use as grounds for evicting them. Learn about the ‘how to evict a tenant’ that are considered valid by the court to ensure hassle-free tenant eviction.
Have a Conversation
It’s always best to have a conversation with them in order to avoid having to deal with the court process of eviction.
Formal Notice of Eviction
If your tenant is stubborn enough not to leave your property, you can give them a formal eviction notice. You must make sure that you follow the set of legal rules and regulations so that you serve notice compliant. You must send the notice before filing the case with the local court. As per the ‘how to evict a tenant’ guide, any landlord would have to send a legal notice to the tenant for the eviction to be liable.
File Eviction with the Court
You will have to pay a fee to file your case with the court. The clerk will notify the tenants about the case via summons and schedule your hearing with the local judge. You will be required to prove you have given enough time to the tenants to leave your property and now you need a possession date.
Attend the Court Hearing
Your case must evidence valid reasons and proof to support your need for tenant eviction.
If everything in the court goes as you planned, you will get a possession order. If still, they don’t leave your house on time, you have the right to get a bailiff.