If you’re an investment property owner, chances are you’ve been in the situation where you have to evict a bad tenant. Typical evictions don’t come out of nowhere, and the process can be emotional, especially if you’ve been helping someone. In the last 13 years, I’ve learned you can best help a tenant in need with tough love. Teaching someone they’re responsible for providing for their family is invaluable. As an investment property owner, you’re seen as someone with a lot of money. Tenants may see you as a business with deep pockets and not as a human. Regardless of the situation, these are the steps we take to evict a bad tenant.

Phoenix Property Management: Serve a Notice

The most important step when dealing with a less than ideal tenant is issuing a notice. Whether you do anything with that notice or not, you need to have it. Legal notices set a standard for tenants. They respect them, and it sets a tone for your relationship. This is your business, and you want to do things the way a business would.

Taking the Tenant to Court

When we realize an eviction will be necessary, we turn the file over to a local attorney. Our attorney focuses completely on landlord and tenant law. This is the best way to protect yourself and your investment when handling an eviction. The attorney files the paperwork and obtains a court date. Once we reach our court date, as long as we have the proper documentation and we have served proper notices, we get a judgment. Then, the tenant has five days to respond. After that, you can order a Writ of Restitution. Once the writ is issued, a constable is assigned. We meet the constable at the property with a locksmith and get the property back. Usually, the tenants are gone.

An eviction costs about $400, depending on the attorney you use plus the locksmith cost. Sometimes, tenants are still there when a constable shows up, or the tenants leave possessions behind. This is rocky territory and you need an expert to protect you. There are lots of laws surrounding landlords and tenants, and you don’t want to make a costly mistake.

You won’t regret using a professional property manager at a time like this. If you have any questions about eviction or property management in Phoenix, please contact us at Arizona Property Brokerage.