Tenant Eviction Rights

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By eHow Contributing Writer

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Many renters face eviction every year. Eviction can be a confusing process and is made all the more difficult by a lack of information about what a tenant's rights are during an eviction. Understanding those rights should help ease the process.

Reasons to Evict

If you are a tenant facing an eviction be aware that a landlord may only do so for proper cause. While proper cause may vary according to the terms of the lease the most common grounds are nonpayment of rent, a tenant's extensive and continuing damage to the property, violation of lease terms or the natural expiration of the lease.

Notice of Intent to Evict

In order to evict a tenant, a landlord must give the tenant proper notice of intent to evict. This usually requires nothing more than a letter, addressed to the tenant and describing the reason for the eviction. In some instances mailing this letter to the tenant is sufficient. However, if you are a resident in public, subsidized or rent-controlled housing most notice requirements and eviction proceedings are modified.

Seven Day Notice

For evictions based upon damage to the property, health hazards or illegal activity, the landlord must give the tenant seven days notice of the eviction before beginning court proceedings to remove the tenant from the property. In many cases, a seven-day notice is required when the eviction is based upon nonpayment of rent, though sometimes as little as three days is required.

Thirty Day Notice

For most other evictions, such as those based on the tenant's violation of a lease term or his holding over after the expiration of the lease, a landlord is generally required to provide a tenant with a 30-day notice though in some instances, up to 60 days may be required.

Illegal Eviction

After giving notice of the intent to evict, the landlord must always go to court if she wishes to have the tenant removed from the property. A landlord who takes action on her own, by harassing or threatening a tenant, locking the tenant out or destroying his property, or disconnecting the utilities in an attempt to drive the tenant out could be held civilly liable for any damages caused.

Avoiding Eviction Once It Has Begun

In most cases, it is possible to end the eviction once notice of intent has been given by correcting the reasons given for eviction. If the eviction is based upon nonpayment of rent, the solution is to pay the outstanding rent. Once the eviction reaches court, though, stopping the eviction is a bit more difficult, although the matter can still be settled at that point, if the tenant agrees to rectify the situation and pay the court costs associated with the eviction process.

Caution

Laws on eviction vary by state and the information should never be substituted for legal advice. If given an eviction notice, please contact a licensed attorney in your area immediately.