Tenants and landlords need to understand the answer to the question of “What is the eviction process in New York?” Knowing your legal rights can impact the outcome of the situation significantly.
Depending on whether you are the tenant or the landlord, eviction proceedings in New York City are either efficient or long and cumbersome. From the time the landlord decides to evict a tenant until the landlord gets possession of the property again can take as little as a month or as much as five months or longer.
Residential and commercial tenants follow the same general path. Some of the forms the landlord and court will use will vary based on whether the eviction is for nonpayment of rent or holdover.
Out-of-Court Stages of Eviction
The initial steps the landlord takes will depend on the reason for the eviction.
· If the tenant did not pay the rent, the landlord must serve notice to the tenant that the tenant can avoid eviction by paying the amount written on the notice. The tenant must pay the entire past-due amount within 14 days of the nonpayment notice. If the 14 days pass without payment in full and the tenant has not moved out, the landlord can file a petition for eviction with the court.
· The landlord must serve the tenant with a 10-Day Notice to Comply that gives the tenant the opportunity to cure (fix) the issue if the reason for eviction is a violation of the terms of the written lease. If the tenant does not correct the problem, the landlord must give the tenant a 30-Day Notice to Quit. The landlord can start evictions proceedings to remove a tenant who does not move out by the end of the 30 days.
· As long as the landlord gives appropriate notice, the landlord can evict a person with no lease or whose lease term expired with no additional grounds required. The landlord must provide 30 days’ notice if the lease or tenancy was less than one year, 60 days’ notice for leases longer than one year but shorter than two years, and 90 days’ notice for leases longer than two years. The landlord can begin eviction proceedings if the tenant does not move by the end of the notice period.
· Tenants who commit illegal activity on the premises can get evicted without notice of the lease violation. These tenants are not allowed to cure the situation.
Once the notice period expires, the court stage can start.
Eviction Cases in New York Courts
The landlord starts the ball rolling by filing a petition for eviction. The petition for eviction and notice of petition must get served on the tenant 10 to 17 days before the hearing. At the hearing, either the landlord or the tenant can request a 14-day adjournment.
If the judge grants the petition for eviction after a hearing, the court will issue a writ of execution. The tenant will have to move out within 14 days of getting the writ of execution (10 days if the eviction is for nonpayment of rent) to avoid getting removed by law enforcement.
David S. Harris can help with your landlord and tenant issues. You can call us today at (718) 291-5544.
Comments