TENANT PROTECTIONS DURING EVICTION
A tenant can be legally evicted only after the landlord has brought a court proceeding and has obtained a judgment of possession; and only a sheriff, marshal, or constable can carry out a court ordered warrant to evict a tenant.
Landlords may not take the law into their own hands and evict a tenant by use of force or unlawful means. For example, a landlord cannot use threats of violence, remove a tenant’s possessions, lock the tenant out of the apartment, or willfully discontinue essential services such as water or heat.
When a tenant is evicted the landlord must give the tenant a reasonable amount of time to remove all belongings. The landlord may not retain the tenant’s personal belongings or furniture.
In a non-payment case, you can only be evicted for not paying your rent. You cannot be evicted for non-payment of other fees (such as late fees, legal fees, or any other “added” fee).
If you lose a housing case and the judge orders your eviction, you can ask the court for up to one year to move under certain mitigating circumstances. It is up to the judge’s discretion. The judge will take into account your health conditions, whether you have children enrolled in school, the hardship on the landlord if you remain, and any other life circumstances that could affect your ability to move.
You may be required to continue to pay rent for the months you remain. New laws strengthen protections for tenants against retaliatory evictions and increase penalties for landlords who illegally lock tenants out of their homes.
A tenant evicted from an apartment in a forcible or unlawful manner can recover triple damagesin a legal action against the landlord. Landlords who use illegal methods to force a tenant to move are also subject to both criminal and civil penalties. Further, the tenant may be entitled to be restored to occupancy.
