To fight an illegal eviction, research local tenant laws, gather evidence, and consider hiring a lawyer. Legal evictions require a notice from the landlord and a court order. Illegal evictions include self-help remedies and retaliatory actions. Victims can sue for damages or file an eviction appeal, and may also file a complaint for housing discrimination.
There are a number of steps in the process of fighting an illegal eviction. The first is to find out about the laws relating to tenants in the country where you live. Next, you should gather any documentation proving that a wrongful eviction has taken place. Then you can decide whether to hire a lawyer to represent you in any legal proceedings. If the court finds that you were unlawfully evicted, you can usually stay in your residence. In these cases, you can often also sue the property owner for damages. Otherwise, if the court does not rule in your favor, your attorney can assist you in filing an eviction appeal.
There are legitimate reasons to evict tenants and a proper way to get an eviction order out of court. Some examples of legal grounds for someone to be evicted include non-payment of rent, extensive property damage, or violation of other rules set out in the lease agreement. A legal eviction usually includes a written document from the landlord, often called a notice of eviction, indicating that he or she intends to take the matter to court. Typically, it isn’t an official eviction until a judge orders it.
As a potential victim of an illegal eviction, your first priority may be to research local laws and educate yourself on relevant tenant rights. In the United States, for example, tenant laws vary by jurisdiction. Many are determined by state and sometimes even local authorities. By contacting a local real estate agency, you can usually find information about what constitutes a legal eviction.
An illegal eviction usually consists of a landlord taking action to remove a tenant without the judicial authority to do so. Some examples of so-called self-help remedies may include changing door locks, removing a tenant’s personal belongings from the property, and turning off utilities. Another example of unlawful eviction is retaliatory eviction, in which the property owner forces a tenant to exercise a right granted to him in the lease agreement. A common example is the eviction of a renter who complains that a maintenance request was not completed satisfactorily or in a timely manner.
If possible, it may be helpful to hire an eviction attorney to advise and possibly represent you at a hearing. You must keep all documents and communications relating to the lease. You may have a stronger case if you can prove that issues existed with the landlord prior to the eviction, such as major repair requests that have gone unanswered or facing sudden rent increases. For example, a tenant may be granted a stay of enforcement by the court if the landlord wrongfully increased the rent and the tenant continued to pay only the rent amount agreed to in the written contract. In this case, the landlord usually cannot evict the person for non-payment of rent.
Some other remedies are available for victims of illegal eviction. You can sue for damages or file an eviction appeal in court. Also, if you believe you have been the victim of housing discrimination, you can file a formal complaint. In the United States, for example, if the discrimination is investigated and found by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the tenant can also get free legal assistance from a HUD attorney.
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