The primary purpose of a landlord tenant summary proceeding is to allow the owner/landlord to regain possession of the premises. 

There are several different ways in which one can evict a tenant including but not limited to- 

Non-payment 
Holding over 
Objectionable tenancy.

Non-Payment

A tenant may be evicted for not paying their rent. Depending on the judge, a cap may be put on the number of months of back rent you can collect (generally spanning between 3 and 8 months). Therefore, it is wise to start eviction proceeds sooner rather than later- if a tenant does not pay rent for a year you may be precluded from collecting all 12 months.

Before a non-payment proceeding can be started, you must notify the tenant that they owe rent (a 3 day notice). You may notify the tenant orally or give them a "3 Day Notice to Quit or Pay" letter. If notifying the tenant in writing, the 3 day notice must be served properly. If after the three days rent is still owed, a non-payment petition may be filed with the court. Upon contacting our office to start an eviction, we will send you an eviction referral form to complete. When filling out the form, please be sure to provide a breakdown of rent owed for each month and whether or not you would like us to try to work out an agreement with the tenant. Additionally, a copy of the lease (if one exists) must be provided so we can be sure to get a judgment for late fees and attorney fees. Please keep in mind that judges have total discretion to deny legal fees, late fees or even reduce the judgment amount.It is important to remember that the only defense to a non-payment petition is payment. Therefore, if the tenant shows up to court with all rent owed, the petition will be dismissed.

Holding-Over

A tenant may be evicted for holding over when he/she remains at the premises after being notified that their month-to-month tenancy is being terminated or upon the expiration of the lease.

The most common hold over proceeding occurs when the tenant either does not have a lease or the lease has since expired and a month-to-month tenancy is created. Before starting a hold over proceeding for a month-to-month tenancy the tenant must be served a 30 Day Notice. Timing for the 30 Day notice is crucial as the 30 days does not necessarily start running at the time of service and the tenant may be allowed to stay well more than 30 days. A 30 Day Notice needs to be served before rent is due (whether it is the first of the month or the fifteenth of the month) and will expire the day before rent is due again (at least 30 days after the notice is served). 

Examples:

John Doe's rent is due on the first of the month. If a 30 day notice is served on November 21st the tenant has until December 31st to vacate the premises.

John Doe's rent is due on the first of the month. If a 30 day notice is served on November 2nd (after rent was already due) the tenant will have until December 31st to vacate the premises.

John Doe's rent is due on the 15th of each month. If a 30 day notice is served on November 14th, the tenant has until December 15th to vacate the premises.

John Doe's rent is due on the 15th of the month. If a 30 day notice is served on November 16th, the tenant has until January 15th to vacate the premises

It is crucial to remember to NOT accept rent after the 30 day notice has expired. If a 30 day notice gives a tenant until December 31st, you CANNOT collect January's rent from the tenant or the 30 day notice becomes null and void and the process must be restarted. If the tenant's rent is paid by DHS or Section 8, mail the check back to the agency with a short letter- be sure to make a copy so the court has proof that rent was returned. A hold over proceeding may also be commenced after a tenant's lease has expired. It is important to read the terms of your lease as it may require the landlord to provide written notice to the tenant. If your lease does not require you to notify the tenant in writing we can start a hold over petition after the lease is expired. It is important to remember to not collect any rent after the lease has expired. Collecting rent after the expiration of the lease creates a month-to-month tenancy and the requirement of providing a 30 day notice (as outlined above) kicks in.

Objectionable Tenancy

A tenant may be evicted for being an "objectionable tenant". An objectionable tenancy may occur when the tenant repeatedly violates the lease, is engaging in unlawful conduct or other serious disturbances. If there is a lease, it is important to read the terms of the lease as it may outline the procedure the landlord must follow. 
It is important to remember that the tenant's conduct must truly be objectionable. Examples of objectionable conduct include repeated encounters with the police, the assignment of nuisance points to the property and repeated behavior that is in violation of the lease (ie. Having a pet when pets are not allowed; frequent loud behavior that is disrupting neighbors, etc.). A tenant may NOT be evicted because they are annoying, because they pay their rent but pay it late every month or because you simply want to get rid of the tenant.