Get CA Unlawful Detainer (Eviction) Instructions

Establish a legal ground to evict the tenant. Serve the tenant with the proper preliminary notice. Wait for the notice to expire. File the unlawful detainer legal documents with the court: ... Serve the tenant with the legal documents.

FILING FEE: In general, you have to pay the filing fee when you file the complaint. How much you pay depends on what kind of case it is. Check the list of filing fees for limited civil-unlawful detainer actions if the amount requested is $25,000.00 or under.

How much will it cost me to file an unlawful detainer to a tenant.? The state-wide filing fee schedule is between $240 and $435, depending on how much you are asking for as monetary damages in addition to possession.

The most obvious cost of an eviction is the eviction costs themselves. The average eviction costs $750 to $1250 to retain an eviction specialist. This however, is not the full, true cost. According to The Law Firm of Dennis P. Block and Associates, the average eviction takes 4 to 6 weeks in California.

In general, the tenant's response is due within five (5) calendar days after service of the unlawful detainer summons and complaint.

In California, a lawsuit to evict a tenant is called an unlawful detainer. Prior to filing and serving an unlawful detainer, your landlord will have likely served you a notice to terminate your tenancy. ... In an unlawful detainer lawsuit, the landlord is the plaintiff and the tenant is the defendant.

From the time you file an Unlawful Detainer Complaint form, the process of getting the tenant evicted typically takes about two months, although eviction can take longer.

An Unlawful Detainer action is a special court proceeding. It's a legal way to evict someone from the place where they live or work. This usually happens when a tenant stays after the lease is up, the lease is canceled, or the landlord thinks the tenant hasn't paid their rent.

Unlawful Detainer. The act of retaining possession of property without legal right. The term unlawful detainer ordinarily refers to the conduct of a tenant who is in possession of an apartment or leased property and refuses to leave the premises upon the expiration or termination of the lease.

The only way a landlord can legally evict a tenant in California is by going through the courts and winning an eviction lawsuit, or unlawful detainer suit. ... California law has made it illegal for the landlord to personally remove the tenant from the rental unit.

1. Make sure that you have legal grounds to evict the tenant. ... Serve tenant with an appropriate notice. ... Wait for the notice to expire. ... File all legal documents with the court. ... Serve the tenant with the proper legal documents. ... Wait for the tenant to respond to the lawsuit. ... Go through the court process.

To defend the eviction, you must file a response with the court within five days of receiving the court summons. Do this by filing form UD-105 or by filing a motion to quash service if you think the landlord did not serve the eviction notice properly.

The law now contains what is known as an actual knowledge requirement. In short, before a landlord accepts the partial payment he must give actual notice to the tenant of the fact that the landlord's acceptance of the payment does not waive the landlord's right to continue with the eviction.

The average eviction costs $750 to $1250 to retain an eviction specialist. This however, is not the full, true cost. According to The Law Firm of Dennis P. Block and Associates, the average eviction takes 4 to 6 weeks in California.

Pay any delinquent rent that is due to the landlord within the allotted time of the notice. Move out of the premises within the allotted time of the notice. File an answer with the judicial court. File a motion to stay with the court.