Nearly 4 million families get evicted from their rental homes every year in the United States. Unfortunately, as a landlord, this is sometimes the only way you can prevent serious damage to your unit or ensure you don't lose money.
But how do you go about it?
We've put together this guide to show you some important things you need to know about evicting tenants in Salt Lake City, Utah, so make sure you keep reading below.
1. You Can Only Evict a Tenant If...
No matter how annoying a tenant may be, you can't evict them unless they do one of the following:
- Stop paying rent
- Refuse to pay for damages they caused to the property
- Stop paying for utilities
- Purposefully damage the property
- Violate the lease
- Won't leave after the lease is up (and after the landlord has provided proper notice)
- Partake in criminal activity
If the tenant doesn't match any of these criteria, you won't be able to evict them from your rental property. Instead, you'll have to wait until their lease is over.
2. The Amount of Notice You're Required to Give a Tenant Before Eviction May Vary
For example, if you're evicting someone who has a month-to-month tenancy, you need to give them 15 days' notice to vacate the property. However, if you're evicting a tenant at will, you only have to give them five days' notice to move out.
That said, most causes of eviction, including things like refusal to pay, purposeful damage, criminal activity, etc., only require three days' notice in the state of Utah.
3. You Need a Court Order to Conduct a Tenant Eviction
It is illegal to evict a tenant from your rental property without a court order. To adhere to eviction law, you will need to file a Summons and Complaint with the court and serve it to the tenant. After that, you will also have to file and serve an Order of Restitution.
Skipping these steps will result in an unlawful eviction, which can result in an expensive lawsuit from the tenant.
4. If a Tenant Refuses to Leave on Their Own, You Can Remove Them
Evictions can be messy, and sometimes, a tenant will refuse to leave the property. If this happens, you can call the local sheriff and have them remove the tenant from the rental unit by force.
Once they are gone, you can change the locks on the building to ensure they can't get back in again. Changing the locks before this happens can get you in trouble with the law.
Evicting Tenants the Easy Way in Salt Lake City, Utah
Evictions in Utah can be difficult, especially if you don't have a lot of experience as a landlord. That's why you should let us handle the hard work for you.
If you're having trouble evicting tenants from your rental property in Salt Lake City, Utah, don't hesitate to get in touch with our team at Utah Property Solutions today! We'll guide you through the process every step of the way and ensure you get your rental unit back as fast as possible.
