Eviction : SBS Trust Deed Network

Eviction

SBS has the capacity to obtain possession of your property for you after foreclosure as well as obtaining a money judgement for all lost rents from the date of the foreclosure sale. Utilizing the in-house Unlawful Detainer service at SBS will relieve you from finding an attorney to handle the Unlawful Detainer action, and it guarantees you expeditious and efficient service

For expert assistance and uncompromising service at a competitive price, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

SBS Trust Deed Network has been in business since 1978 and our staff of professionals are ready to serve you.

Eviction After A Foreclosure

In rare cases, after the foreclosure process has been properly completed, the former homeowners will refuse to vacate the property. When this happens, you must follow the law precisely, and go through the legal process of eviction in order to have them removed.

When a situation like this occurs the former homeowners are, in legal terms, ‘keeping possession of real property without a right’, which then falls under the “unlawful detainer” provisions of the law.

To begin the eviction process, you must first file an “unlawful detainer” lawsuit in Superior Court. These lawsuits are ‘summary’ or ‘bench’ hearings, which usually move very quickly through the courts, and give the defendants very little time to respond. In this type of lawsuit, once the lawsuit is filed, the tenant will typically have only five days to respond and a judge will normally hear and decide the case within 20 days after the defendants file their response.

*** How The Typical Eviction Process Works ***

Uncontested vs Contested Case

After the lawsuit is filed, the tenant will be served with a copy of the formal complaint. They have 5 days to file a written response to the complaint with the court. If they respond to the complaint it is considered a ‘Contested Case’ as they are responding or contesting the lawsuit and a hearing date will be set. If they don’t respond within 5 days, it is considered an “Uncontested Case’ and a judgment is automatically filed against them.

Uncontested Case

In a vast majority of eviction cases the tenant will not respond to the lawsuit, as the outcome is fairly inevitable. When this happens, the judge will automatically find in favor of the trustees or landlord and will issue a ‘writ of possession’. As soon as the judgment is filed by the clerk of the court, and the case is sent over to the sheriff’s department to begin lockout proceedings.

The sheriff will post a ‘5 Day Notice to Vacate’ on the property and the occupants have 5 days to leave. If they don’t leave in 5 days, the sheriff will return and physically remove them and lock them out. The locks will be changed and possession returned to the trustees.

Contested Case

Contested cases are usually simply a matter of the tenant (former homeowner) just trying to buy some more time, and to delay and drag out the eviction process.

In a contested case the tenant has responded to the lawsuit in some manner. When this happens a hearing date is set. Because these are ‘summary’ or ‘bench’ hearings, they are very quick and a judge will usually hear the case within 20 days.

Common Tactics to Delay Eviction

After a foreclosure is completed properly, there really are no legal grounds to contest the “unlawful detainer” action and avoid an eviction. There are however, a lot of ways for the defendant to delay and drag out the process and buy some time. Here are some the most common tactics used after a foreclosure:

Answer to Complaint

Simply by answering the complaint, the process will be delayed up to 20 days, or until the trail date. So they have the initial 5 days after being served, up to 20 days waiting for the trial, and then they’ll be issued a ‘5 Day Notice to Vacate’ so they’ll have another 5 days after the judgment is entered against them to vacate. This delays the eviction by up to 30 days.

Motion to Quash

In a ‘Motion to Quash’ the defendant will claim to the courts that the summons and complaint was not served properly and ask for the case to be dismissed. The obvious point here is how did they know about the complaint if they weren’t served. These motions are typically dismissed and the judge the order the defendant to file an answer within 5 days. This delays the evictions by about 10-12 days.

Unlawful Methods of Eviction

It is very important to use the legal process and follow the letter of the law in evicting former homeowners that refuse to leave. In this scenario, they legally have the same rights as a tenant and the trustee becomes the landlord.

If a landlord uses any kind of unlawful methods to evict a tenant, the landlord may be subject to liability for any damages, and penalties of up to $100 per day of the time that the landlord used the unlawful methods. That is why it is so important to follow the letter of the law, and never attempt to evict the homeowner yourself.

After a foreclosure is completed properly, there is no doubt of the outcome of an ‘unlawful detainer’ action. The homeowners will loose the lawsuit and they will be required by law to leave. As described above, If they don’t leave, the sheriff will force them to vacate the property. So it makes absolutely no sense to attempt to evict them yourself.

SBS Will Handle Your Eviction Proceedings

When you run into a situation where you have to proceed with an eviction, SBS has the legal team to obtain possession of your property for you after foreclosure as well as obtaining a money judgement for all lost rents from the date of the foreclosure sale. Utilizing the in-house Unlawful Detainer service at SBS will relieve you from finding an attorney to handle the Unlawful Detainer action, and it guarantees you expeditious and efficient service.

For expert assistance and uncompromising service at a competitive price, please don’t hesitate to contact us. SBS Trust Deed Network has been in business since 1978 and our staff of professionals are ready to serve you.

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