Eviction Process in Georgia: Timeline, Notices & Costs

What the Safe at Home Act changed

Georgia’s eviction process used to be among the most landlord-friendly in the country. It’s still fast, but the Safe at Home Act (HB 404, effective July 1, 2024) added several rules small landlords need to build in:

• A required pre-filing notice. For leases entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024, you must give a 3-business-day written notice to pay or vacate before filing a nonpayment case.
• A statutory warranty of habitability. You must keep the unit fit for living, which tenants can raise as a defense.
• Stronger anti-retaliation rules. Filing soon after a tenant reports code violations can look like retaliation.
• A 2-month deposit cap, relevant if you plan to apply the deposit to arrears later.

Stage 1: the notice

Nonpayment. Give a written 3-business-day notice to pay or vacate. Business days skip weekends and legal holidays, so a notice delivered Thursday runs through the following Tuesday. Put the exact amount owed in the notice.

Other grounds. Make a written demand for possession. Georgia doesn’t set a statutory cure period for lease violations, so the lease controls how much time you give.

Month-to-month. You must give 60 days’ notice; the tenant gives 30 (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-7).

Stage 2: the dispossessory affidavit

When the notice period ends, file a dispossessory affidavit in the magistrate court of the county where the property is (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50). The affidavit states the facts, the rent owed and what you’re asking for. Filing fees run roughly $60 to $100 or more, with about $50 for service. Check with the clerk; many Georgia magistrate courts accept online filing.

Stage 3: service and the 7-day answer

The sheriff or marshal serves the summons. The tenant has 7 days to answer, in writing or orally at the court. Count carefully before you ask for a default.

Stage 4: default or hearing

If the tenant doesn’t answer, request a default judgment and a writ of possession. If they answer, the court sets a hearing. Bring the lease, the notice and proof of delivery, a rent ledger and photos. Magistrate judges often encourage the parties to settle in the hallway before the case is called.

Stage 5: the appeal window and the writ

After judgment, the tenant has 7 days to appeal. A tenant who appeals a nonpayment case generally has to pay rent into the court registry while the appeal is pending. Once the window passes, the sheriff or marshal executes the writ of possession. Scheduling varies by county.

A realistic timeline for a metro Atlanta rental

Say the tenant in your Gwinnett County townhouse owes $1,500.

Stage	Typical time
3-business-day notice	3-5 calendar days
Filing to service	3-10 days
7-day answer period	7 days
Default judgment	A few days
7-day appeal window	7 days
Writ execution	1-2 weeks, depending on the county
Total, uncontested	About 3-6 weeks

Four weeks of lost rent at $1,500 is about $1,400, plus the filing fee, service and writ costs.

What slows a Georgia case

• The tenant tenders the rent. In a nonpayment case, a tenant can generally pay the full amount owed plus certain costs within a short window after service, and you must accept it. That defense is available once per 12 months.
• An answer raising habitability or retaliation, both strengthened by the Safe at Home Act.
• A missing or defective 3-business-day notice on a lease that requires one.
• An appeal to state or superior court.
• Bankruptcy, which triggers an automatic stay until the bankruptcy court lifts it.
• Busy county courts. Metro Atlanta magistrate courts and sheriffs can have backlogs at the writ stage.

No self-help evictions

Georgia doesn’t allow you to remove a tenant yourself. Changing the locks, cutting off utilities, removing doors or putting belongings out without a writ exposes you to a lawsuit for wrongful eviction and damages. Doing it after a tenant complained about repairs adds a retaliation claim. The writ, executed by the sheriff or marshal, is the only legal way to take back possession.

Settling before the writ

Many Georgia cases end with a consent agreement at the magistrate court: the tenant pays arrears on a schedule, or agrees to move by a set date. If a payment plan is realistic, put it in writing and file it with the court so a missed payment leads straight to the writ. If it isn’t, cash for keys (a set payment and the deposit back for a clean move-out by a signed date) can get the unit back faster than the appeal window.

Landlords also have to disclose flooding history in writing (at least 3 floods in the past 5 years) under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-20, which is worth checking before you re-let the unit.

This page is general information, not legal advice. For a contested case, talk to a Georgia landlord-tenant attorney or the magistrate court’s self-help resources.