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FILING
AN EVICTION IN West Virginia
Under West Virginia law your landlord is required
to provide you with proper written notice in advance
before attempting to evict you. The amount of notice
required varies depending on whether or not there is
a written lease. If there is a written lease or
rental agreement, the landlord is required to
provide at least the amount of notice stated in the
lease.
Most tenants simply rent housing on a
month-to-month basis without any written lease. In
these cases, West Virginia law requires that
landlords provide tenants with notice of eviction at
least one full rental period in advance before the
end of the preceding period. This means your
landlord must notify you before your new monthly
rental period begins in order to request that you
leave by the end of the month.
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For example, if your rent is due on the first day
of the month, say on April 1, and if your landlord
wants you to move out by the end of April, then the
landlord must provide you with a notice of eviction
on or before the last day in March. If your landlord
provides you with the notice of eviction after you
have already paid rent for the new monthly rental
period, then the landlord cannot properly require
that you move out until the end of the next month. |
Even though West Virginia law requires landlords
to provide proper notice in advance before
attempting to evict tenants, in some cases the
landlords can file a suit in court to evict tenants
without providing any notice. If you are behind in
your rent, then the landlord may go directly to
court and file a suit to evict you without giving a
written notice in advance. In addition, if you have
violated some other provision of the lease, (for
example, by having a pet without the landlord's
consent) the landlord can also file a suit to evict
you without providing a written notice in advance.
It is important for all tenants to realize that
the most important right of all is that a landlord
cannot evict you without first going through court,
even if a written notice in advance is not required.
In other words, a landlord cannot legally change the
lock on your door, shut off your utilities, or take
any other action to force you out of your rental
housing without first going to court and proving to
a judge or jury that he or she has the right to have
you evicted. Once in court, you have the right to
contest the eviction suit. You may also have the
right to file your own suit against the landlord (
called a counterclaim). Defending the eviction suit
and filing a counterclaim against the landlord is
discussed elsewhere in the West Virginia handbook.
See
also PDF brochure Legal Aid of West Virginia: Appeal
For Possession
Distribution Courtesy of: Consumer Protection
Division
Office of the West Virginia State Attorney General
Darrell V. McGraw, Jr.
State Attorney General
Telephone Number 1-304-558-8986
Toll Free Hotline Number 800-368-8808
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