A ROUTINE
A landlord initiates the action at the county clerk of court's office by filling out a summons and a request to eject the tenant. Almost always, the reason is simple: the tenant is short or late on rent.
Two weeks later, the landlord comes to court to make his case and hopefully get the blessing of a magistrate to evict his tenant.
Beginning every weekday morning at 9 o'clock, landlords and tenants file into a nondescript waiting area. Anywhere between a handful to dozens of people sit in chairs lined against walls. A magistrate calls out names, inviting parties one case at a time into a small, adjoining office.
Most of the time, following a brief swearing in with hands on the bible, the hearing is a series of simple questions uttered rapid fire: Do you have a lease? What does your lease say about rent being due and notice to evict?
Sometimes these hearings become contentious. And with office doors left wide open, deeply personal, life changing discussions are on public display.
For renters, the eviction process often begins with a knock on the door from the sheriff's deputy.
Answering the door carries an unusual risk - you're on the hook for the unpaid rent, in the form of a judgment against your name. If you are unable to pay, your credit takes a hit. If you don't answer, the deputy simply tacks the notice up on the door.
Once in eviction court, the matter is typically resolved in a matter of minutes. Usually, the tenant doesn't show up. But when she does, things can quickly get expensive. Because showing up, just like answering that door, can mean you're on the hook for the back rent, current rent, and court costs.
About a third of the time, the cases are dismissed. Often, it's because the tenant and landlord reach an agreement and the case gets tossed the same day of the hearing. Other times, the tenant brings proof she already settled her debt.
Whatever the judgement is, both the tenant and landlord have 10 days to appeal. Then the landlord can go back to the clerk's office and ask that the sheriff's office assist while he changes the locks.
That final knock from the deputy comes about 10 days later. Instructions are simple: grab a few necessities like medicine, a change of clothes, and get out. Tenants can arrange to come back for their belongings at a time that's convenient for the landlord.
The impacts are felt immediately, and for those evicted, the stakes are often high.
The entire eviction process can take several weeks, but these steps are almost always the same. It's impossible to know how many tenants wind up on the streets – the courts don't track that. But two thirds of the time, the tenants lose.
Some pack up the moment the sheriff tacks the notice on the door. Many leave before the hearing even takes place. Others settle up and find a way to stay, even after the landlord wins in court. And still others linger until the sheriff makes that final knock on the door.
“Right now, we're just trying to get some money together,” says Richard Zuccaro. “So, hopefully we can get somewhere, because if I'm on the street in the condition I'm in, I'm not going to make it.” --[PULL QUOTE]