Removing a guest who will not leave in Georgia

Letting a friend or relative stay for a while is common. Getting them out when the welcome runs out is harder. In Georgia, the right method depends on one question: is this person a tenant, a guest, or an intruder? Pick the wrong process and you can lose weeks, or break the law yourself.

Tenant, guest, or intruder

A guest is someone you invited for a visit who has no right to stay against your wishes. A tenant has a right to possession, which can come from a written lease, an oral agreement, or an arrangement to pay rent. An intruder, in the legal sense, is someone in possession who does not claim in good faith any right to be there.

The line between guest and tenant is blurrier than most people expect. The Georgia Landlord Tenant Handbook, a Georgia Department of Community Affairs guide posted by the Georgia Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division, addresses the friend who was allowed to move in until finding another place to live. Even without charging rent, you may have created a landlord-tenant relationship. If the permission had no specific end date, the handbook calls it a tenancy at will, which you end with a 60-day notice to vacate. We cover the guest-to-tenant timeline in a separate post.

Removing a tenant through the dispossessory process

If the person is a tenant, including a tenant at will, you must go through the dispossessory process. For a tenant at will, the 60-day notice has to run out first. Then make a demand for possession, ideally in writing. If they refuse to leave, file a dispossessory affidavit under oath in magistrate court in the county where the property is located. The affidavit names you and the occupant, states why they are being removed, confirms you demanded possession and were refused, and lists any money owed.

After the affidavit is served, the occupant has seven days to answer. If they do not answer, the case is in default and the court can grant a writ of possession. If they answer, the court holds a hearing. When the court rules for you, you can request a writ of possession, which requires the occupant to move after seven days. The sheriff generally supervises the removal of anyone who still refuses.

Why you cannot change the locks on a tenant

Georgia does not allow self-help evictions. The handbook says landlords cannot put tenants out or block their access to a unit without going through the court process, and that self-help evictions "are illegal, even if the tenant has violated the lease." The tenant stays in possession until the court decides, and the landlord cannot cut off utilities while the case is pending.

That rule covers a homeowner whose houseguest became a tenant at will. Changing the locks, removing their things, or shutting off the power can give the occupant grounds to sue you. Use the court.

Removing an intruder under Georgia's squatter law

Georgia's squatter law, the Georgia Squatter Reform Act, created a faster route for people with no right to be there. It made unlawful squatting a crime: entering someone else's land or premises and living there for any period of time, knowingly acting without the knowledge or consent of the owner, the rightful occupant, or an authorized representative.

A person accused of squatting receives a citation and has three business days to present the law enforcement agency with properly executed documentation of a right to be there, such as a lease, a rental agreement, or proof of rent payments. Someone who cannot produce documents can be arrested. If they do produce documents, a hearing is set within seven days. If the court finds the documents were not properly executed or are not meritorious, the person faces removal, possible arrest, and an extra fine based on the monthly fair market rent.

The law also updated the intruder affidavit process. An owner who claims the right of possession in good faith signs an affidavit stating that the property is held by someone who does not claim a right to it in good faith and refuses to leave. A sheriff, deputy, constable, marshal, or other certified officer shows the affidavit to the occupant. Unless the occupant hands over a counteraffidavit claiming a good-faith legal right to stay, the officer removes them once three days have passed. If a counteraffidavit is filed, the case goes to magistrate court for a trial without a jury, and the court can award fair market rent for the time the person stayed.

When the intruder route does not fit

The affidavit process is meant for someone with no good-faith claim to be there. A guest you invited in, or a relative who has lived with you for months, may well have a claim as a tenant at will. Using the intruder process on that person invites a counteraffidavit and a trial, which costs you time. Under the statute, a counteraffidavit requires the officer to leave both sides where they are until the magistrate court hears the case. When the person moved in with your permission, the dispossessory route is usually the safer choice.

What to document, and what law enforcement does

Keep a file from the first day things go wrong. Write down when the person arrived, who invited them, whether they paid anything or did chores in exchange for staying, and whether they get mail at the address. Save texts about how long the stay was supposed to last. Photograph any damage. Each of those facts helps show whether the person is a guest, a tenant, or an intruder.

Officers often will not remove someone who claims to live at the address unless a court order or the squatter law's process applies. In a dispossessory case, the sheriff serves the papers and supervises removal after a writ issues. Under the squatter law, officers issue the citation, receive the documents, and carry out removal when the affidavit period runs out. If you feel unsafe at any point, call 911.

If you decide to charge a relative or friend rent, put it in a written room rental agreement with the rent, the end date, and the notice terms you both accept.

Sources

• Georgia Squatter Reform Act (House Bill 1017), signed legislation, Office of the Governor
• Georgia Landlord Tenant Handbook, Georgia Department of Community Affairs (hosted by the Consumer Protection Division)
• Georgia Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division: Landlord-Tenant Issues and Handbook