Something no renter wants to receive is an unlawful detainer. An unlawful detainer is a lawsuit to evict a tenant and they vary greatly from state to state.
Whether you’re a landlord, property manager, or tenant, dealing with unlawful detainers is less than ideal. Continue reading below to learn more about unlawful detainers, what to do if you receive one, and how you can avoid them.
An unlawful detainer is a lawsuit that a landlord files to evict a tenant. Landlords can serve an unlawful detainer on a tenant when they are still living in a property that they no longer have a right to live in.
Some reasons a tenant may receive a notice of unlawful detainer are:
There are usually some steps a landlord has to take before filing a lawsuit against a tenant. These rules vary, depending on where you live. Typically, the landlord will first give the tenant a notice of the tenant’s violation, often called a Notice to Quit. If the tenant does not fix the violation, then the landlord can file and serve an unlawful detainer lawsuit against the tenant.
If you are served with an unlawful detainer lawsuit, you typically only have a few days to respond. Not all states have the same turn around period to respond, so check with your state’s notice period. If you don’t respond, the court can default you, which means your landlord automatically wins the case and can evict you. If you do respond to the unlawful detainer, some courts will schedule a settlement conference before setting a trial date, while others will immediately set a date for trial.
During a settlement conference, the parties can try to resolve the issue, but if you and your landlord can’t reach a settlement, you will proceed to trial. The court will then decide whether your landlord has grounds to move to evict you.
When it comes to unlawful detainers, there are certain rules that landlords and their property managers have to follow, in order to legally evict a tenant. For instance, in one city, a landlord may have to deliver a notice to quit in person, while another city may require the property manager to send it via certified mail.
Cities with rent control, like Portland, OR and San Francisco, CA, often have different laws regarding unlawful detainers. Whether you live in a city with rent control or not, make sure to read up on your local and state laws to help avoid an unlawful detainer action.
It’s easy to confuse a Notice to quit and an eviction notice because they are related to each other. Here’s a little more on the differences between the two.
An unlawful detainer action is a lawsuit that your landlord files when you breach your lease agreement and they believe you are no longer entitled to live at the property. Eviction is the process of physically removing you from the property. If you lose at the unlawful detainer trial, you will be evicted. But if you win the lawsuit, you won’t be evicted. So, an unlawful detainer will always come before an eviction, but also doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be evicted.
The other important difference between an unlawful detainer and eviction is who performs the action. Landlords or property managers file unlawful detainer suits with the court, while the sheriff is the only person who can evict someone from their apartment.
