The Long Island eviction process runs through the Nassau County District Court or one of Suffolk County’s district courts, and no landlord can lawfully remove a tenant without first obtaining a judgment and a warrant signed by a judge. From the first written notice to the sheriff’s lockout, the case typically takes several weeks to several months, depending on whether the tenant appears, raises defenses, or negotiates a settlement. The rules tightened considerably under the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019, and both sides need to work within that framework.
Grounds That Let an Eviction Case Start
A landlord in New York can only file an eviction case on specific legal grounds. Two tracks cover almost every residential case on Long Island.
A non-payment case is for tenants who have fallen behind on rent. The landlord asks the court for both the money owed and possession of the apartment. Under RPAPL §711, the case cannot start until the landlord has served a written 14-day demand giving the tenant the choice to pay or move out.1New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 711 – Grounds Where Landlord-Tenant Relationship Exists If the tenant pays everything owed before the first court appearance, the case stops.
A holdover case is for everything else: a tenant who stays past the end of the lease, violates a material lease term, or remains after a proper termination notice. Month-to-month tenants can be brought in on a holdover once the correct written notice has run. Squatters fall outside the tenant protections in RPAPL §711 and are dealt with separately.1New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 711 – Grounds Where Landlord-Tenant Relationship Exists
Written Notice Before Filing
No case can be filed without the right notice first, and the type of case determines what notice is required. This is where landlords most often lose before the merits are ever reached.
For non-payment, the landlord serves a written 14-day rent demand. Late fees cannot be charged until rent is at least five days overdue, and the fee cannot exceed $50 or 5 percent of the monthly rent, whichever is less.2New York State Senate. New Rights for Tenants – Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019
For holdover cases and lease terminations, Real Property Law §226-c sets the notice period by how long the tenant has been in the unit:
- Less than one year of occupancy and no lease of at least one year: at least 30 days’ notice.
- One to two years of occupancy, or a lease of one to two years: at least 60 days’ notice.
- More than two years of occupancy, or a lease of two or more years: at least 90 days’ notice.3New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law Section 226-C
Those same periods apply when the landlord plans to raise the rent by 5 percent or more. Getting the notice period wrong, or failing to put it in writing, is one of the most common reasons eviction cases are dismissed before trial.
Filing and Serving the Petition
Once the notice has expired without compliance, the landlord prepares a Notice of Petition and Petition and files them at the district court covering the property. Nassau County cases go through the Nassau County District Court in Hempstead. Suffolk County divides landlord-tenant filings across several district courts based on the town where the property is located.4New York Courts. Suffolk District Landlord and Tenant Court The clerk collects the filing fee, assigns an index number, and schedules the first court date.
RPAPL §735 limits service to three methods: personal delivery to the tenant; delivery to a person of suitable age and discretion at the property, followed by mailing; or posting on the door (or sliding it under) when no one can be found, again followed by mailing. When substituted or conspicuous-place service is used, the landlord must also mail copies by both certified and regular first-class mail within one day. Court papers must be served at least 10 days before the scheduled court date.2New York State Senate. New Rights for Tenants – Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 An Affidavit of Service is then filed with the court. If the affidavit doesn’t match what actually happened, the case can be thrown out.
The Court Date
Both sides appear in the Landlord-Tenant Part of the district court on the scheduled day. The landlord carries the burden of proving that every notice requirement was satisfied and that valid grounds exist. A tenant who raises defenses has the right to a 14-day adjournment before trial.2New York State Senate. New Rights for Tenants – Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019
If the landlord wins, the court issues a Judgment of Possession and signs a Warrant of Eviction authorizing the sheriff to remove the occupants. In non-payment cases, the judgment can include an award for unpaid rent and court costs, but the landlord cannot recover non-rent charges such as late fees or damages through a non-payment proceeding.2New York State Senate. New Rights for Tenants – Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019
Settling at the Courthouse
Many Long Island cases resolve through a stipulation of settlement signed at the courthouse rather than through a full trial. In a non-payment case, a stipulation usually spells out the exact amount owed, which months it covers, and a payment schedule. In a holdover, it often sets a move-out date. Both sides can negotiate every term, and no one should sign a stipulation they do not fully understand. Once the judge approves it, the stipulation is enforceable as a court order.
Defenses a Tenant Can Raise
Judges will not raise defenses on your behalf. If you have one, you have to put it on the record.
Warranty of Habitability
Real Property Law §235-b guarantees that every residential rental, written lease or not, be fit for human habitation and free of conditions dangerous to life, health, or safety. Serious problems like a broken heating system, major plumbing failures, pest infestations, or structural damage can support a defense in a non-payment case, and the court can reduce or eliminate the rent owed depending on severity. A lease clause attempting to waive the warranty is void.5New York State Senate. New York Real Property Law Section 235-B – Warranty of Habitability Minor cosmetic complaints will not qualify.
30-Day Cure for Lease Violations
If a court finds that a tenant breached the lease, the tenant must be given 30 days to fix the problem before eviction can proceed.2New York State Senate. New Rights for Tenants – Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 This covers curable violations like unauthorized pets or noise complaints, not expired lease terms.
Hardship Stay
Even after losing, a tenant can ask the court for a stay of up to one year under RPAPL §753. The court weighs whether comparable housing can be found nearby, whether the tenant or family members have serious health conditions, whether children are enrolled in local schools, and the hardship a delay would cause the landlord. The tenant must keep paying rent during the stay.6New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law Section 753 – Stay in Premises Occupied for Dwelling Purposes
Paying to Stop a Non-Payment Eviction
In a non-payment case, the tenant can pay all rent due plus court costs at any point before the physical eviction. Even after a warrant has been issued, full payment requires the court to vacate the warrant unless the landlord can prove the tenant withheld rent in bad faith.7New York Courts. Stays After Entry of Judgment in a Nonpayment Proceeding
Active Military Service
Service members and their dependents have added protections. A court cannot evict a service member without a hearing and can postpone the eviction for at least six months if military service has affected the tenant’s ability to pay rent.7New York Courts. Stays After Entry of Judgment in a Nonpayment Proceeding
Sheriff Enforcement and Illegal Lockouts
Only the county sheriff can physically evict a tenant on Long Island. Changing the locks, shutting off utilities, or removing a tenant’s belongings without a warrant is an illegal lockout, no matter how much rent is owed.
Once the court issues a Warrant of Eviction, the landlord delivers it to the Nassau or Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office. The sheriff then serves the tenant with a written 14-day notice before carrying out the eviction.8New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law Section 749 – Warrant The Suffolk County Sheriff’s Civil Enforcement Bureau handles evictions across the county’s ten townships.9Suffolk County Sheriffs Office. Civil Enforcement Bureau In Nassau County, the Sheriff’s Office charges $90 per writ of possession for the first hour of service, with additional hours billed at $35 per hour per deputy.10Nassau County Sheriff’s Office. Civil Process Service Procedures and Fees If the tenant has not left by the sheriff’s deadline, a deputy returns during business hours to supervise the removal and lock change, after which the landlord has legal possession again.
Belongings Left Behind
Landlords cannot throw a tenant’s property in the trash after an eviction. New York law requires reasonable steps to protect personal property left behind. The common practice is to store items for roughly 30 days, notify the tenant at their last known address about where to collect their belongings, and set a pickup deadline. Perishables and obvious garbage can be discarded, but anything of value must be kept safe. A written inventory and photographs taken before anything is moved protect the landlord from later claims of damage or conversion.
What Eviction Costs
Landlords should plan for court filing fees that vary by court, sheriff enforcement fees starting at $90 in Nassau County, process server costs when service is not handled personally, and attorney fees if a lawyer is hired. Tenants who lose can be ordered to pay the landlord’s court costs on top of any unpaid rent.
Credit and Screening Consequences
An eviction follows a tenant well past the lockout. A money judgment for unpaid rent can stay on a credit report for up to seven years. Tenant screening companies are consumer reporting agencies under the Fair Credit Reporting Act and must meet accuracy standards when they report housing court history, including noting the outcome of each case.11Federal Trade Commission. What Tenant Background Screening Companies Need to Know About the Fair Credit Reporting Act A case dismissed or decided in the tenant’s favor should be reported that way, but not every screening company gets it right, and inaccurate records can be disputed directly with the screening company. Most private landlords on Long Island run background checks, so resolving a case through a stipulation rather than a default judgment gives a tenant more control over what appears later.
Does Good Cause Eviction Apply on Long Island?
New York’s Good Cause Eviction law, enacted in the 2025 state budget, is mandatory in New York City, but towns and villages outside the city must opt in for it to apply locally. Where it does apply, a landlord needs a legitimate reason to refuse a lease renewal or evict, and a rent increase above 10 percent, or 5 percent plus the Consumer Price Index (whichever is lower), is presumptively unreasonable.12Homes and Community Renewal. Good Cause Eviction Significant exemptions include small landlords owning 10 or fewer units statewide, owner-occupied buildings with 10 or fewer residential units, rent-regulated apartments, condos and co-ops, buildings with a certificate of occupancy issued on or after January 1, 2009, and income-restricted housing.13Office of the Attorney General. New York State Good Cause Eviction Law The 14-day rent demand in a non-payment case must now state whether the unit is subject to good cause eviction and, if exempt, explain why.1New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 711 – Grounds Where Landlord-Tenant Relationship Exists Check with your local town or village clerk to confirm whether your municipality has opted in.
Free Legal Help in Nassau and Suffolk
Tenants who cannot afford a lawyer have several options. Legal Services of Long Island provides civil legal help to low-income residents on housing and eviction matters and can be reached at (631) 232-2400. Nassau Suffolk Law Services represents and advises tenants facing eviction. The Legal Aid Society of Suffolk County handles civil cases for eligible residents, and Long Island Housing Services assists with fair housing issues and landlord disputes. These organizations can help you understand your rights, prepare court papers, and in some cases provide full representation at the hearing.