Let’s review. Bad things happen to good people. You can’t pay your rent. But instead of doing the “man up” on this thing and talking to your landlord, or instead of moving out in the middle of the night, you’ve always had a thing for men in uniform so you’re trying to arrange a date with the local sheriff.
Or in other words, against all advice, perhaps owing to needless embarrassment, you’ve completely ignored this one. Which seems to be working out. For a while. Because the eviction process is slow.
The process starts with a 5-Day notice. This notice actually requires you to either pay your rent or move out in five days. If you don’t, you’re subject automatically to double the rent should this one wind up in court. Wouldn’t calling the landlord be better?
But instead, the 5-Day gets ignored. At the end of the five day period, the landlord can file an eviction case in small claims court if you are still there. The landlord has to have that case served on you – your first chance to meet with the local sheriff or at least a process server. The landlord can have you served at work if he can’t find you at home. That should be fun.
There’s no avoiding the service of the case because after repeated attempts to serve, the case can be posted on your door and mailed to you. Congratulations, you now have a court date!
Some people even ignore that. But if you do decide to show up in court, you had better have proof of rental payments. The court isn’t going to be interested in your sob stories. If you agree that rent hasn’t been paid or if you can’t reasonably prove that it’s been paid, the discussion will end there. Judgement for the landlord.
The court will issue a writ of eviction. That’s just a fancy legal term for a court order to the local sheriff to throw you out. To find out just what that traffic accident looks like, check back here next time.