What do I do if I have to evict in Atlanta

[Katrina Cabral]

My property manager is the worst. They billed me for a bunch of repairs and for the clean up of my property to prepare it for rent - and did none of it. They also scammed my tenants who rented it sight unseen  - handing over the keys and running off without even a walk through. The place was filthy - had a broken toilet full of human waste. Their lease is up today, they gave notice six weeks ago but couldn’t find a new place, so they want to stay and sign another one year lease. They always pay rent on time and seem like nice people. It seemed like an easy enough transition to transfer the lease agreement to my name. I asked them to fill out an application and WHOA... bad credit, lots of late payments, high credit card bills $9k, and she has a criminal record for child abuse, and neither of them provided any verifiable documentation of income. (!) So, now I’m left wondering if the reason they couldn’t move is because of all this. Is it any wonder why I dislike my PM?

What if they’re both unemployed and I won’t have the resources to evict? It’s going to be a struggle property managing long distance but handling an eviction - seems insurmountable. What to do? How hard is it to do an eviction in Georgia? 

I wanted them out before I let my PM go so that I could screen and select my new tenants but they couldn’t find  a new place. What would you do?

[Michaela G.]

So, first of all, where did you get the information that all of these things hadn't been done by your property manager? Yes, it's likely that it's all true, but it could also be that this tenant is fabricating things, so that you feel sorry for them and let them stay. 

If you're planning to do this yourself, I would suggest for you to contact Alpha Evictions. Barbara has an attorney that does all of her eviction hearings and she has a set out crew. They have a marshall that goes through certain neighborhoods with them on certain days of the week and set out happens quicker, than if you just file yourself. 

My experience is only with Fulton cty. I usually file through  connect 2 court dot com and they file the next day and serve the following. 

The tenant then has 7 days to respond to the court. They usually wait until the last day. 

Court date is usually about 10 days after that answer date. At the hearing there will be mediation, hoping that a consent agreement will be signed, before it gets to the judge. 

If no agreement, the judge will hear and will give at least 7 days. 

After those 7 days you can apply for a writ of possession and give to marshal. They can be weeks behind, so that's where a big hold-up happens.