Notice

• In Georgia, the notice requirements for tenants failing to pay rent are different than landlord seeking to end the tenancy for other issues. Landlords must provide tenants-at-will or oral lease tenants with at least a 60-day opportunity to vacate prior to eviction. For tenants with a written lease agreement, the provisions of the lease determine the length of the notice period. If there is no notice period, then landlords must provide these tenants with the same 60-day notice. However, landlords evicting tenants for failure to pay rent do not have to provide a 60-day notice period. Landlords can immediately file a demand affidavit.
  
  

Written Demand and Dispossessory Warrant

• Georgia law requires landlords to comply with its dispossessory process. The dispossessory process includes the "Dispossessory Warrant or Affidavit." The affidavit provides the tenant with notice that the landlord is demanding possession and requesting the tenant to leave voluntarily or risk forced eviction in court. Landlords must deliver the affidavit to tenants through personal service, through first-class mail or through posting it on the tenant's door if personal service is not possible. Depending upon the local rules in the Georgia county where the rental is located, landlords may have to personally serve the tenants through the local sheriff's office or through a process server. The affidavit sets a hearing date for the eviction hearing. Tenants have seven days to file an answer from the date of service.
  
  

Default and Writ of Possession

• Tenants who do not respond within the seven-day period are in default. Landlords may proceed with requesting a "Writ of Possession" from the court. If a writ is granted, then the writ provides the sheriff to remove the tenant and the tenant's belongings immediately. If the tenant answers, then the case proceeds to hearing. If the landlord prevails in court during the eviction hearing, then the court orders a Writ of Possession allowing the landlord to request the sheriff's removal of the tenant's belongings from the rental unit.
  
  

Affirmative Defenses

• Landlords who accept rent during the dispossessory period can waive their affirmative defenses to evicting the tenant for nonpayment of rent. Additionally, landlords that accept rent after the expiration of the lease can create a tenancy-at-will with the holdover tenant. Tenancies-at-will require landlords to provide 60 additional days of notice to terminate prior to proceeding with the Writ of Possession request.
  
  

Illegal Self-Help Measures

• In Georgia, landlords cannot resort to self-help measures to force tenants to leave by changing locks or turning off utilities. Landlords who resort to self-help evictions without obtaining a court order permitting these actions may face civil monetary fines or lawsuits from tenants improperly evicted.
  
  

Considerations

• Since real estate laws frequently change, you should not use this information as a substitute for legal advice. Seek advice through an attorney licensed to practice law in your jurisdiction.