Are You Able to Start Your Eviction?

March 17, 2015 · Coauthored by Joe Cloer & Susan Cook

You cannot just evict someone. Nope, you can’t. Yes, it is your property, but there are specific things that you, the landlord, must do to conform to Georgia’s legal requirements before you start an eviction. Georgia law clearly defines what must happen to evict a tenant, but often I run into landlords who have never met the most basic conditions set forth by Georgia law to start the eviction process. Don’t be that landlord; don’t slow yourself down.

This seems like a no-brainer, but it isn’t: you must actually have a landlord/tenant relationship in effect to evict someone from your property. That relationship stands out clearly when someone who lives in your property pays you or your agent monthly rent, even in the absence of a written lease. However, if you have a lease-purchase agreement with a tenant, the tenant may claim to be the owner of the property because he is paying rent to you which he considers to be a type of mortgage. That claim seldom works in court, but it can.

Moreover, you have to tell your tenant that you intend to begin eviction proceedings before you do so. Georgia law defines grounds for eviction (dispossession), and you must state why you plan to evict the tenant. Did your tenant fail to pay rent? Did he violate his lease terms? Did he fail to turn over your premises when his lease ended? Did he create a breach in the lease? Familiarize yourself with the terms of your own lease. Understand it. Make sure you complied with your own lease, and then make sure you say why you need them to leave. Proper notice and termination is crucial. And yes, it can be verbal if you want, but the written word cannot be misheard or denied. Even if the tenant agrees to leave, you need the coverage of an actual demand letter. Sometimes a tenant expresses the intent to leave just to get you to go away, to put you off, and then they do not move. Demand that they go in a way that you can prove. And do it before starting the eviction. It’s the law.

Finally, understand that Georgia law requires specific timelines for specific types of notice and termination. If your tenant reaches or is about to reach the end of the lease, you must demand that the tenant move after lease termination but before you file the eviction. If your tenant did not pay you, you must demand that the tenant move out after he is late on rent but before you start the eviction. It’s the law. Again, I recommend getting everything in writing, in a form you can prove you sent. Sometimes a written demand is all it takes for them to leave, sometimes not.

But if you have established your relationship, have a reason under the law to evict, and keep your evidence to support that reason, your eviction timeline could stay reasonably short. Keep yourself ready to defend your property. Establish who you are to your tenant; notify them of their breach under the law; write your demand letter; keep records. Now you are ready to evict.