What Washington, D.C. Renters Need to Know About Eviction

Washington, D.C. is notoriously one of the most tenant-friendly jurisdictions in the United States. While you absolutely can (and probably will) be evicted if you do not pay rent or breach your lease, D.C. law affords you several opportunities to challenge your eviction.

Reasons for eviction

An “eviction” is a formal legal process whereby a court grants permission to the owner of real property to remove the person residing in that property. Note the word “formal”—evictions are not casual things. Contrary to what you may believe, a landlord cannot evict you for any reason whatsoever, and cannot simply change your locks and throw your possessions on the curb.

There are three major grounds for eviction in D.C.:

• You didn’t pay rent
• You violated your lease agreement

• You committed an “illegal act” in your residence, or violated the Housing Code

D.C. law also allows a landlord to evict a tenant for a few extremely specific reasons:

• The landlord wants to take over the property for their own personal residence
• The landlord is selling or demolishing the residence
• The landlord is converting the property to a condo or co-op
• The landlord wishes to make repairs that can only be safely performed with the unit unoccupied

The latter situation—in which a landlord wishes to make repairs—involves an extremely complicated and lengthy process, and only results in a temporary eviction. In short, your landlord needs to inform you of his desire to make repairs, get permission to do so from the city government, and provide you with alternate housing.

A note on the “illegal act” law—your landlord cannot simply state that you committed an illegal act and begin eviction proceedings. You need to be convicted of a crime in a court of law. And the crime needs to have something to do with the residence: for example, that your apartment is a “drug haven”. If you are convicted of drunk driving, you cannot be evicted on that ground. Generally speaking, your landlord needs to show that there is some connection between your offense, and the health and/or safety of other tenants. See, D.C. Housing Authority v. Whitfield, 132 WLR 2445 (Super. Ct. 2004).

A final note: unlike anywhere else in the country, you cannot be evicted in D.C. based solely on not having a lease agreement. If you are a month-to-month tenant, your lease agreement continues in perpetuity. Your landlord needs some other reason (listed above) to evict you.

Initial notices and waiting periods

Notices

If your landlord is alleging that you haven’t paid rent, or have violated a provision of your lease, he must give you thirty days’ written notice via a Notice to Vacate to either pay the arrears or vacate the apartment, before beginning eviction proceedings. One important thing to note: D.C. law allows tenants to waive the notice requirement for non-payment of rent in their lease. So, if you have waived this, your landlord does not need to notify you that you need to pay the rent. He can simply commence eviction proceedings.

If your landlord wishes to evict you because they are selling the residence, or because they wish to move into it themselves, they need to provide you with 90 days’ notice before commencing eviction proceedings.

The Notice to Vacate must be formally served on you, in person or by mail. D.C. also has something called a “Rent Administrator”, a government officer who oversees rental issues. She must also be served with the Notice to Vacate in cases that do not involve non-payment of rent.

Summons and Complaint

After the time period expires on the notice you received, if you have not yet paid your rent or cured your breach, your landlord will serve two documents on you: a summons.pdf) and a complaint.

A summons and a complaint must be formally served on you, in person or by mail. Your landlord will need to provide a court with an Affidavit of Service showing that they served you properly.

The summons and complaint are important documents - study them carefully. They will inform you of the basis on which your landlord wants to evict you, and the date on which you need to appear in court.

Court

At your court appearance, you will be able to state your case to the judge. If you feel that your eviction is unjust, bring proof! For example, if you did not pay your rent because repairs were not done properly, show the judge proof of those faulty repairs. The more information you can provide, the better. The judge may set down a future trial date, where both sides can formally present their respective cases.

If you lose your eviction case, your landlord will receive from the court a judgment for possession. If you still fail to vacate your residence after receiving the execution, you can be forcibly removed by a sheriff. The “writ” your landlord gives the sheriff is good for 75 days, and you can be evicted at any time during that One thing to note: if you are being evicted solely for non-payment of rent, you can still pay off your rent at any time, even after your landlord has won his court case, unless you previously waived this right and/or agreed to move out. The only caveat: you must pay all the rent off to avoid eviction; partial payments are not sufficient.

Note that your D.C. landlord is barred from actually following through on an eviction and having you removed from the residence on an day when it is raining, or when the temperature is below 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Also note that a U.S. Marshal must be present for your eviction. If one is not, the eviction is illegal.

How notices must be delivered

All documents sent by your landlord must be served formally. Your landlord must first attempt to serve you in person. If he is unable to do so, he can “nail and mail” the document, meaning he can mail it to you and affix it to your door.

Timeline

The time it can take to evict a tenant in D.C. varies widely depending on whether the tenant takes steps to fight the eviction. Non-payment cases can be shorter, as there will be fewer facts in dispute, and your landlord may not be required to provide you with advance notice.

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