How does a landlord sue a tenant for unpaid rent?

Answer 1

Have you written a demand letter to the tenant? If not, why? Many tenants will work with you--references are getting more and more important and landlords can post unpaid rent at http://nopaytenants.com/. Information on how to write a demand letter can be found at the Related Questions below.

If you find that the tenant will not work with you, you will need to proceed with legal action. You options are:

Small Claims Court: This is the easiest and cheapest method of suing for unpaid rent. Small claims court is a court where the process is designed for laymen. In fact, in most states, no attorneys are allowed in small claims court unless they are being sued there. However, each state has a jurisdictional limit for small claims court. You cannot sue the tenant in small claims court for an amount that exceeds the jurisdictional limit. See the below link for each state's jurisdictional limit.

To file a small claim, fill out a simple form at your local courthouse and a court date will be set up. In some jurisdictions, small claims are required to go to mediation first, so a mediation date may be assigned as well.

The tenant will need to be served with the small claim form well before the first hearing. Most courts have a brochure explaining the options you have to serve the tenant.

At the mediation, no witnesses are allowed, but be prepared to show through your rental contract and accounting records that the tenant owes you rent. If you are unable to settle through mediation, you must go to trial. At trial, you must bring all witnesses, contracts, documents, and other evidence that prove the tenant owes you rent. The tenant will have to show evidence why he or she does not owe you money. After hearing the evidence and giving each party the chance to cross-examine the other party's witnesses, the judge will make a decision.

Small claims court decisions can be appealed in some jurisdictions. The Small Claims Court Resource Center, which can be found at the link below, will give you a great deal of information about the small claims process.

Civil Court: Civil court is where you go if your tenant owes you more money than your state's small claims jurisdictional limit. You could also sue in civil court if you are uncomfortable with small claims court. In civil court, the process is complicated and designed for attorneys, not laymen. Because of that, if you sue in civil court, you should seriously consider being represented by a landlord-tenant attorney. A listing of these attorneys can be found in your local phone book.

Arbitration and Mediation: It feels like cheating to recommend these options when you asked about how to sue. However, mediation and arbitration are very successful dispute resolution options, especially when the amount you are owed exceeds the small claims court jurisdictional limit. See the Related Question "What are alternatives to small claims court?" below for details.