Unless the tenant is being evicted for illegal activity, the landlord begins the process of removing a tenant from their property by serving them with a notice to quit. Depending on the situation, the type of notice and the length of time before it expires will be different. For non-payment and non-compliance cases, the tenant will have the chance to fix the situation within the notice period and continue their tenancy.

By downloading and filling out one of the forms provided below, the landlord can provide their tenant with the appropriate notice.

• 14-Day Notice to Quit for Non-Payment
• 30-Day Notice to Quit for Violation of Lease
• 1-Month Notice to Terminate Month-to-Month Lease
• Immediate Notice to Quit for Illegal Activity

When serving the Notice to Quit, it is recommended to follow the same requirements as other legal documents to ensure that they will be accepted by the court (see guide).

The landlord will need to have a professional process server or an adult 18 years or older deliver the form. If the document isn’t served in person to the tenant, it must be posted on the premises in addition to being sent by mail.

After serving the notice, the server must complete an Affidavit of Personal Service or Affidavit of Substituted or Conspicuous Place Service (affidavits must be notarized).

To begin a landlord-tenant case, the landlord will need to complete the Notice of Petition and Holdover Petition to Recover Possession of Real Property forms (for non-payment cases see the Non-Payment Petition Program below).

Once completed, these forms, along with the expired Notice to Quit and completed Affidavit of Service, must be filed with the clerk of the City, Village, or Town Court (for properties outside NYC) or the Housing Court (for properties within NYC) associated with the property’s location. The Court Clerk will set a hearing date for the case.

The New York State Unified Court System provides the following online programs to assist small property owners in completing the eviction process:

• Small Property Owner Licensee Holdover Petition Program
• Small Property Owner Licensee Holdover Petition Program (NYC)
• Small Property Owner Non-Payment Petition Program
• Small Property Owner Non-Payment Petition Program (NYC)

 Most forms require notarization from a registered Notary Public.

Next, the landlord must have a private process server or other adult serve the Notice of Petition and Petition and other forms on the tenant. The notice informs the tenant when to come to court and that they must file an Answer if they wish to contest the landlord’s petition.

After serving the documents, the server will need to complete an Affidavit of Personal Service or Affidavit of Substituted or Conspicuous Place Service, depending on the method of service to be filed with the court.

The tenant may choose to respond to the landlord’s petition by filing an Answer with the Court Clerk. This can be accomplished one of two ways, either by giving an oral Answer in-person to the Clerk or by completing an Answer Form and delivering it to the landlord and the Clerk.

For non-payment cases in New York City, the Housing Court provides a Non-Payment Answer Program.

If both parties attend the trial on the appointed hearing date and do not agree to a settlement, the court will hear the tenant and the landlord’s sides of the story before reaching a judgment. In the event that the tenant does not appear at the trial, a default judgment will be entered in the landlord’s favor.

If the landlord wins a holdover case, the Judgment will state the prevailing party, the damages that the other party must pay, and will set an eviction date by which the tenant must move out. In a non-payment trial, if the tenant is able to pay the landlord in accordance with the judgment they will be able to maintain their tenancy.

When a judgment is granted in the landlord’s favor and if the tenant remains non-compliant, the Judge will issue a Warrant of Eviction that orders the local marshal, sheriff, or constable to evict the tenant. Upon receiving this warrant, law enforcement will serve the tenant with a Notice of Eviction warning them that they will be removed from the property within as little as 72 hours if they do not quit the premises.