Georgia Dispossessory Process: Notice, Answer, and Writ

The Georgia dispossessory process is the court-supervised procedure a landlord must use to remove a tenant: give the tenant proper written notice, file a sworn affidavit in the Magistrate Court for the county where the property sits, let the tenant’s seven-day response window run, obtain a judgment and writ of possession, and after a mandatory seven-day waiting period have the sheriff carry out the removal. It is the only lawful route. Changing locks, cutting utilities, or otherwise forcing a tenant out without a court order carries fines and civil liability.

Grounds That Justify Filing

Georgia law recognizes three reasons a landlord can file. Nonpayment of rent is the most common, and it covers unpaid rent, late fees, utilities, and any other charges owed under the lease. Holding over applies when the tenant remains after the lease has expired or been terminated. Lease violations cover breaches like unauthorized occupants or property damage. The reason you file dictates the notice you must give first.

The Notice the Landlord Must Give First

For nonpayment, the tenant must receive a written three-business-day notice to pay everything owed or vacate. If the tenant neither pays nor leaves within three business days, the case can go to court.¹

For holdover and lease-violation cases, the landlord makes a demand for possession. The statute does not impose a specific waiting period after that demand; if the tenant refuses to leave, the landlord can file immediately.¹

Whatever the reason, the notice must be posted in a sealed envelope on the door of the property. Any additional delivery methods the lease requires should also be followed.¹

Filing the Dispossessory Affidavit

After the notice period passes, the landlord (or an agent or attorney) swears out an affidavit before the magistrate court clerk, a superior or state court judge, or a notary public. The affidavit is the sworn statement of facts that opens the court case.¹

Include the full legal names of all adult tenants, the full property address with any unit number, and the specific grounds. In nonpayment cases, state the exact amount owed. The tenant’s right to stop the eviction by paying depends on knowing that figure. The Clerk of the Magistrate Court in the county where the property sits typically provides standard affidavit forms.

Filing fees vary by county but commonly run about $60 for the affidavit plus $25 per defendant for sheriff service, so a single-tenant case lands around $85.²

How the Tenant Is Served

Once the affidavit is filed, the court issues a summons and the sheriff or a lawful constable serves the tenant. Personal service, handing the papers directly to the tenant, is the preferred method.³

If the sheriff cannot reach the tenant in person, service can be made on any competent adult found living at the property. If that fails too, the sheriff may use tack-and-mail service: attaching a copy of the summons and affidavit to the door and mailing another copy to the tenant’s last known address by first-class mail the same day.³

The service method has real consequences for what the landlord can win. When a tenant is served only by tack and mail and never responds, the court can enter default judgment for possession, but it cannot award a money judgment for unpaid rent. A money judgment is available on tack-and-mail service only if the tenant files an answer or appears in court.³

The Tenant’s Seven Days to Answer

After service, the tenant has seven days to file an answer. It can be written or oral; an oral answer is endorsed on the affidavit by the court. The tenant can raise any legal or equitable defense or counterclaim. If the seventh day falls on a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day.³

No Answer Means Default

If the tenant does not answer within seven days, the landlord is entitled to a default judgment. The court issues a writ of possession and awards all rents claimed in the affidavit, no hearing or additional proof required. A large share of dispossessory cases end here.⁴

The Tender Defense in Nonpayment Cases

In a nonpayment case, the tenant has one additional option during the same seven-day window: offer to pay all rent allegedly owed plus the court costs. A valid tender is a complete defense. The landlord is only required to accept a tender from the same tenant once every twelve months.⁵

If the landlord refuses a valid tender, the tenant should file an answer saying tender was offered and rejected. The court can order the landlord to accept payment and give the tenant three days to pay after that order. Fail to pay in those three days and the writ of possession issues. A court-ordered acceptance does not count against the tenant’s one annual tender.⁵

The Hearing and Judgment

If the tenant answers, the case is set for trial under the magistrate court’s streamlined procedures, and courts are directed to move these cases quickly. Both sides present evidence. The tenant may raise defenses such as a repair-and-deduct claim, breach of quiet enjoyment, or retaliation.⁴

While the case is pending, the tenant can stay in the unit, but has to pay rent into the court’s registry as it comes due. If the amount is disputed and there is no written lease, the court sets the amount at whatever the tenant last paid and the landlord accepted without objection. Missing one of those payments triggers an automatic writ of possession, regardless of the defense’s merits.⁶

If the judge rules against the tenant, the judgment includes an order for possession and may include a money award for unpaid rent and related charges. A tenant with a successful counterclaim, such as diminished rental value from a landlord’s failure to maintain the property, may offset or defeat the landlord’s claim.⁷

The Writ of Possession and Removal

After judgment, the court issues the writ of possession, but a seven-day waiting period runs from the judgment date before it can be executed. The tenant uses that window to move out voluntarily or file an appeal.⁷

Once that week passes, the landlord pays a $25 fee to the sheriff to carry out the removal.² The sheriff supervises the eviction, which may include removing the tenant and their belongings. The writ has to be executed within 30 days of issuance. Miss that window and the landlord has to file a new affidavit and start over.

Any personal property left behind after the writ is executed is legally considered abandoned. The landlord has no custodial duty for it. The writ authorizes placing the belongings on a portion of the landlord’s property or on another location approved by the executing officer.⁷

Appeals

A tenant who loses at trial can appeal to the superior or state court, but filing the appeal alone does not keep the tenant in the property. To remain in possession during the appeal, the tenant must pay into the court registry all rent the trial court found due, plus all future rent as it comes due until the appeal is resolved. Miss a payment and the right to stay is forfeited. The same rent-into-registry rule applies for appeals that reach the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court, with payments going into the trial court’s registry.⁸

What Landlords Cannot Do

Self-help eviction is flatly illegal in Georgia. Changing the locks, shutting off utilities, removing doors, or blocking access are prohibited even when the tenant has clearly violated the lease or owes months of rent.⁹

Cutting off a tenant’s cooling, heat, light, or water before the dispossessory action reaches final disposition is a criminal offense punishable by a fine of up to $500.¹⁰

If a landlord retaliates against a tenant for requesting repairs or exercising other legal rights by cutting services or blocking access within three months of the tenant’s protected action, the tenant can recover one month’s rent plus $500, court costs, and potentially attorney fees, minus any balance the tenant owes.⁹

If the Tenant Is a Military Servicemember

Federal law adds protection when the tenant is an active-duty servicemember or their dependent. Under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, a landlord cannot evict a servicemember from a primary residence without a court order, and the protection applies when monthly rent falls below an annually adjusted threshold.¹¹

If the servicemember’s ability to pay has been materially affected by military service, the court must stay the proceedings for at least 90 days on request, and it can adjust the lease obligations to balance both sides’ interests. Knowingly participating in an eviction that violates these protections carries federal criminal penalties, including fines and up to one year in prison.¹¹

Before pursuing a default judgment, verify the tenant’s military status. If the tenant is in military service and has not appeared, the court is required to appoint someone to represent the servicemember’s interests before the case can proceed.¹²

1
Justia. Georgia Code 44-7-50 – Demand for Possession; Affidavit
2
Justia. Georgia Code 15-16-21 – Fees for Sheriffs Services; Disposition of Fees
3
Justia. Georgia Code 44-7-51 – Issuance of Summons; Service; Time for Answer; Defenses and Counterclaims
4
Justia. Georgia Code 44-7-53 – When Writ of Possession Issued
5
Justia. Georgia Code 44-7-52 – When Tender of Payment by Tenant
6
Justia. Georgia Code 44-7-54 – Payment of Rent and Utility Payments Into Court; Issuance of Writ of Possession Upon Failure to Pay
7
Justia. Georgia Code 44-7-55 – Judgment; Writ of Possession; Landlords Liability for Wrongful Conduct; Distribution of Funds Paid Into Court; Personal Property
8
Justia. Georgia Code 44-7-56 – Appeal; Procedure; Possession and Payment of Rent Pending Appeal
9
Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Georgia Landlord-Tenant Handbook
10
Justia. Georgia Code 44-7-14.1 – Landlords Duties as to Utilities
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3951 – Evictions and Distress
12
U.S. Department of Justice. Financial and Housing Rights