My Tenants Haven't Paid Their Rent, Now What?

You thought that the new tenants were going to be trouble-free. Their background check came back clean, and there were no red flags at the beginning, but they are late on the rent. What are your options at this point to collect the rent that is due, and if you can't do that, what are the steps to evict tenants? Here are the rights of landlords according to Nevada law.

The Right To Rent Due

As a landlord, Nevada law recognizes that you have a right to rent owed you. An eviction notice can be served as early as the first day after the rent is due. By law, landlords have to give tenants five days to pay the rent or to move out.

Landlords will want to be sure to provide the notice in writing, clearly stating what amount of past due rent and late charges need to be paid. Get the tenant's signature on your copy of the notice as proof of receipt. It can be a good idea to have a person along as a witness when you serve the eviction notice.

Post And Mail

If the tenants don't answer the door and you can't find them at their workplace, one possible option is to post the eviction notice on their front door and mail them a copy as well. In this situation, tenants get the five days notice plus three extra days to accommodate for mailing.

Deposit Rights

If the rent doesn't get paid, you as the landlord typically have a right to the security deposit as compensation. In the event the tenants don't pay and don't move out, an option available to landlords is to file an eviction lawsuit with the county court.

Eviction Lawsuit

You typically have the option to file an eviction lawsuit if the tenants don't pay the past due rent within five days while remaining in the rental. What happens in such lawsuits can be very impactful for landlords. It can impact whether they are ultimately able to get a court order to evict a tenant that has refused to move or pay rent.

It is illegal to facilitate an eviction by turning off utilities while the tenants still reside at the premises, even if they haven't paid you. Make sure that you know all of the legal steps you can take before doing anything that could place you at risk as a landlord.