Utah Eviction Process

How to Evict a Tenant in Utah

Step 1 – Serve Notice

Use a Utah eviction notice template to ensure your notice follows all applicable rules.

Serve the notice via one of the following methods, per Utah Code § 78B-6-805:

• Hand-delivering a copy to the tenant
• Giving a copy to someone of “suitable” age who lives with the tenant
• Mailing a copy to them through registered or certified mail and requesting a return receipt
• Posting a copy of the notice in an easily observable place on the leased property

Step 2 – Wait for the Tenant’s Response

Wait out the three- to 15-day period that the tenant has to either move out or solve the evicting offense.

Step 3 – File an Eviction Lawsuit

Find the appropriate Utah District Court for your property’s location and file an eviction lawsuit there, including a complaint and summons. Depending on the court, you’ll pay filing fees between $90 and $375.

Step 4 – Serve the Summons and Complaint to the Tenant

The summons can be served before the complaint is filed with the courts, or both must be served within 120 days after the complaint is filed, per Utah Rules of Civil Procedure, Utah R. Civ. P. Rule 4. If the tenant is served the summons before the complaint is filed, you’ll have ten days to bring it to the proper district court (Utah R. Civ. P. Rule 3).

The tenant must sign a document (either physically or electronically) to indicate receipt of the summons as “proof of service,” which must be filed with the courts.

Step 5 – Wait for an Answer

If the tenant fails to timely respond with a defense of why they shouldn’t face eviction, they will lose the chance to attend an occupancy hearing. In this case, the court will automatically rule in your favor.

Step 6 – Attend the Hearing

A hearing will take place within ten days of the tenant’s answer to decide whether they can stay at the property before the court makes a final decision (Utah Code § 78B-6-810). The court may refer to this as an “occupancy” or “evidentiary” hearing. If you don’t want to wait ten days for a hearing, you can also file for a possession bond.

The court may decide to rule in your favor at this point in the process, removing the need for any further hearings. The court will hold the eviction trial if the judge needs more information to decide after the occupancy hearing. You will automatically win the case if the tenant doesn’t appear at this trial.

If the judge rules you as the case’s winner, they will administer a restitution order that requires the tenant to move out. You or the tenant can appeal within ten days of the verdict, or three days if the offense is an illegal activity or nuisance (Utah Code § 78B-6-813).

Step 7 – Seek Property Repossession

If the tenant doesn’t move out within three days after a verdict in your favor, law enforcement will forcibly remove them using an Order of Restitution of the Premises. If they were involved in illegal activity on your property, law enforcement may remove them immediately to let you regain possession.

Eviction Reasons

Utah landlords cannot evict tenants without cause. It’s important to understand which situations are acceptable grounds for eviction so you know whether your case applies.

Legal reasons for eviction fall into two groups: at-fault and no-fault. An at-fault eviction occurs when the tenant fails to pay rent or breaks another part of the lease agreement. A no-fault eviction occurs when the landlord ends the tenancy without the tenant doing anything wrong.

At-Fault Evictions

Three main issues can result in at-fault evictions per Utah Code § 78B-6-802, namely:

• Late or missing rent payments
• Violation of the lease’s rules
• Illegal activity or severe property damage

Once an offense occurs, landlords can begin the eviction process by delivering a notice to the tenant. The notice will note whether or not the violation can be “cured” by the tenant through payment or action.

1. Notice for Nonpayment of Rent

Overview:

• Use this 3-day notice if the tenant owes past-due rent.
• Utah doesn’t require a grace period for late rent, so the landlord can send this notice the day following the late payment.
• Once the tenant receives the notice, they have three days to pay before the landlord can file for eviction (Utah Code § 78B-6-802(1)(c)).

2. Notice for Noncompliance with Lease

Overview:

• Use this 3-day notice to quit for noncompliance if the tenant breaks one of the terms agreed to within the lease.
• The notice must give tenants three days to cure the issue or vacate (Utah Code § 78B-6-802(1)(h)).

Several lease violations can lead to an eviction, including curable problems like:

• Having a pet on a pet-free property
• Smoking in a non-smoking property
• Engaging in non-criminal activities that break the lease’s rules

In these cases, the tenant has three days to stop the activity or move out of the property.

Landlords can also evict for “incurable” problems, in which case the tenant must move in three days with no chance to fix the issue. These include:

• Subleasing: Subletting to a third party if the lease specifically bans it.
• Creating waste: Allowing trash to pile up, causing damage to the property, or failing to keep the premises clean and safe.
• Repeated nuisances: Non-criminal nuisance behavior such as having frequent parties or visitors so frequently that it consistently disturbs neighbors (Utah Code § 78B-6-1108).

3. Notice for Illegal Activity or Substantial Property Damage

Overview:

• Use it if the tenant conducts illegal activity on the property or severely damages the premises.
• These issues are incurable, so the tenant does not get a chance to fix them before eviction.
• The notice must give tenants three days to leave before the landlord can file a lawsuit.

Serious offenses such as conducting or starting an illegal business on the property can lead to the use of an unconditional quit notice. This type of notice is for incurable violations only and offers no option to fix the problem. It instructs the tenant to leave within three days.

These notices cover tenant actions such as using or storing controlled substances, gambling, owning an illegal weapon, vandalizing the property, or threatening violence against the landlord or other tenants.

No-Fault Evictions

A no-fault eviction occurs when a landlord decides to stop leasing a property to a tenant who has followed all rules in the lease. These evictions can occur if a landlord decides to move into the residence themselves, perform an extensive renovation, or let a family member move in.

No-fault evictions start with a notice to move out within 15 days. You can serve the tenant a “no-cause” notice at the end of their lease term or when they live on the property without a lease.

1. Notice to Terminate a Month-to-Month Lease

Overview:

• Use a 15-day notice to evict a tenant in good standing with a month-to-month lease.
• An eviction notice must give tenants 15 days to move out (Utah Code § 78B-6-802(1)(b)(i)).

2. Notice to Evict a Tenant at Will

Overview:

• Use this notice to evict a tenant in good standing without a lease who lives there indefinitely and has no specified period to leave.
• It must give tenants at least five days to move out (Utah Code § 78B-6-802(1)(b)(ii)).

Eviction Timeline

Tenant Rights in Utah

Utah statutes protect tenants from abuses by their landlords. Since removing a tenant from their residence can be detrimental to their livelihood, if you don’t follow all proper procedures for eviction, you may lose your case.

Self-Help Evictions

In Utah, “self-help” evictions are illegal and will significantly impact or hinder your ability to legally evict the tenant. Self-help measures include:

• Locking the tenant out
• Shutting off utilities
• Forcibly removing the tenant by yourself or with the help of others
• Dumping the tenant’s belongings outside the property

Retaliatory evictions, which involve evicting a tenant for taking legally protected actions against you, are also illegal. Although not mentioned explicitly in the Utah Code, retaliatory evictions were determined illegal by the state court in the case, Bldg. Monitoring Systems, Inc. v. Paxton (1991). Protected tenant actions include:

• Complaining about health and safety issues at the property to a relevant authority
• Joining a tenant’s organization

Abandoned Property

Per Utah Code § 78B-6-816, if the tenant abandons personal property after eviction, you must store it for 15 days. You can recover any related costs from the tenant.

Upon finding the personal property, you must send a notice informing the tenant of the remaining property to the tenant’s last known address and post a copy in a “conspicuous place.” The date of the notice starts the 15 days for the tenant to recover their property.

If they don’t reasonably attempt to obtain their property within that period, you can dispose of it however you see fit.

Resources

• Utah State Courts: Provides eviction information for landlords and an eviction roadmap.
• Salt Lake City Housing Stability Division: Works to provide rental assistance and prevent eviction.
• Utah Legal Services: Explains the basics of evictions and provides legal assistance.
• US Department of Housing and Urban Development: Explains tenants’ rights, laws, and protections.